I Will Always Belong With You
by KashinaKairi
Summary: This is the sequel to I Would give My Life For You. Wasn't planning on writing one, but here it is. And I seem to like time travel. Please note that the cover image will be changing eventually. Once I get to the right chapter. Which according to my outline, is going to be around the 60th chapter. So this is going to be a long one. Enjoy! Possible sequel in the making. Stay tuned.
1. Begin Again

Hello. Sorry if you thought the update was for a new chapter. I just decided to give a more definite finish to what happened with Shunsui and Seto after Nanao vanished.

I do not own Bleach.

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"Happy Birthday Seto!" Shunsui and Nanao stood in the doorway of their son's room. They smiled as he rubbed his eyes and looked at them.

Nanao walked over to her son's bed and kneeled down in front of it. "Morning sweet heart." Nanao kissed his brow while he tried to get back to sleep. "You sure you want to sleep more? The party has already started." Nanao smiled as her son threw off his blankets and ran to his bathroom.

"You know how to wake him up very well." Shunsui leaned on the doorframe as he watched his wife walk over to him.

Nanao smiled and tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear. "That's because he is your son." Nanao leaned on Shunsui's chest with her arms wrapping around his neck.

"He's your son too, Nanao-chan." Shunsui leaned down and kissed her gently.

"Gross." Both parents looked at their son as he went to his closet to pick out clothes for the day.

"It's not gross, Seto-chan. It's my declaration of love to your mother." Shunsui leaned Nanao back into a dip before kissing her again.

Seto covered his eyes and looked away. Sometimes he agreed with his mother about his father being a little strange. And very enthusiastic most of the time.

Nanao laughed at Shunsui's reaction to their son's comment. She stepped out of Shunsui's arms and picked up the box that was on the floor by their feet. She held it out to her son. "Why don't you wear this for the day?" She winked at her son once he caught sight of the bright pink wrapping paper.

"I can tell dad wrapped this." Seto took the gift and sat on his bed. He tore the paper off, ignoring his father's hurt look as he tore it to shreds. His eyes lit up as he opened the box. "Really?! I can wear this?"

"Yep." Nanao smiled as her son hugged the box and ran to the bathroom.

Shunsui chuckled at his son's enthusiasm. Even at the age of eight he could still act like the small child he once was. He walked over to Nanao and wrapped his arms around her. "You're sure you don't want another one?"

Nanao laughed at his question. She honestly didn't know if she wanted to have another child. It wasn't so bad now since Seto was older. Maybe she did want another. "You will have to wait and see." She caressed his check as he kissed her neck, avoiding her ticklish spots. She flicked his forehead when he started nipping. "None of that, Shunsui. Or I might have to start acting professional with you while we are around our son."

Shunsui gave her a mock pout. "My Nanao-chan can be so cruel at times." He laughed once she raised an eyebrow at him. "Nanao-chan is so cute." Shunsui placed a kiss on her brow and hugged her. At times he still thought that the life he had was a dream. But everyday he found ways to prove it wasn't.

"What do you think?" Seto walked out of the bathroom and spun around. As much as he hated to admit it, he had the same enthusiastic personality as his father. It was just toned down a bit. But he always acted more childlike on his birthday. It made it more fun.

Shunsui smiled as he picked up his son and spun around with him. "Seto-chan looks great in a shihakusho."

"Do you have to keep calling me 'chan'? I'm eight now!" Seto knew his father would still call him that. So he didn't sound completely serious.

"But Seto-chan will always be my Seto-chan." Shunsui smiled as he set his son back down on the ground. "Shall we go?"

"Where are we going?" Seto knew there was a party, but he didn't know where.

"There seems to be a party going on at 8th division. And it seems to be missing it's guest of honour." Nanao smiled as her son realized where they were going. He hadn't been back to 8th squad since his sixth birthday.

"Race you there." Shunsui poked his son's shoulder before stepping into shunpo.

"No fair!" Seto tried to catch up with his dad, but he had only just recently learned shunpo.

"Then lets catch him together." Nanao landed beside her son. He smiled and wrapped his arms around her neck. Nanao hugged him as she stepped into her highest level of shunpo.

Nanao stopped in front of the gates to 8th squad, her squad. She set her son on the ground as they waited for Shunsui. He appeared a few seconds later. "No fair. My wife conspired against me."

"Mommy is always on my team." Seto grinned at his father. Every time they played a game, he and his mother always teamed up.

Nanao placed a hand on her son's shoulder. "Why don't you go find Lisa-chan? She should be in the office. Maybe you can convince her to practise with you." Nanao smiled as her son's violet eyes got big and his smile grow.

"Yay!" Seto turned and ran towards the squad buildings. He knew this place like the back of his hand.

"He is most definitely your son. Running happily towards an office filled with dreaded paperwork." Shunsui pulled Nanao into an embrace. He smiled as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "I no longer have my beautiful Nanao-chan to brighten up my office."

"That's your own fault. You were the one that asked me to be Taichou of 8th squad. Remember?" Nanao smirked at him, he was being himself. Nanao sighed as she felt a familiar reiatsu approach. "Your work never leaves you alone does it?"

"At least they stopped showing up outside our bedroom at night." Shunsui understood his wife's complaint. They had been interrupted many times by the messenger currently heading towards them.

Not two seconds later, there was a messenger kneeling in front of the two Taichous. "Kyoraku-Soutaichou. This requires your attention." The messenger held out a scroll.

Shunsui took the scroll from the messenger. He left once the scroll was no longer in his possession. Nanao took the scroll from Shunsui. "Sometimes I do have to do some work, my lovely Nanao-chan."

"Not today. This is the first day off you have had in three months. Seto misses spending time with you." Nanao smiled gently at her husband. He had started taking his job more seriously after Seto was born. "Go spend time with him. I will take care of this." Nanao held up the scroll and shook it. "Now go." Nanao made a shooing motion with her hand.

"Okay, okay. I love you, my sweet beautiful lovely Nanao-chan." Shunsui gave her a quick kiss before heading into his old division. His wife certainly knew how to make him do things.

Nanao laughed as she turned away from her squad and began walking towards first squad. She was surprised to find the scroll unsealed. She unrolled it and read the first line. "Kyoraku Nanao, thank you for offering your assistance." Nanao continued to read. 'So they knew I would take this from Shunsui. I'm surprised they could anticipated that.'

'Well considering how he normally is...it isn't all that surprising.' Nanao smiled at Katen Kyokotsu's comment. 'So what is the job?'

'Please don't report it back to Shunsui. He hasn't spent much time with his son. They both miss each other.' Nanao continued to read through the scroll. Her eyes stopped on one word, or a name rather. "Bastard." Nanao whispered under her breath as she quickened her pace.

'Are you sure you don't want his help?' Nanao listened to Chishitoge's worried voice. It wasn't like him to worry.

'I can take care of myself. Plus he isn't as powerful as before.' Nanao got to the Soutaichou's office and found the floor had been torn apart. "Well he certainly didn't act subtly." Nanao scanned the room for any traces of the man's reiatsu.

She easily found his sickeningly gentle signature. She followed it, but stopped when it's path intersected with another. And the other was heading for the Sokyoku hill. "What is he doing there?" Nanao headed off in the new direction. She stopped once she reached the top of the hill. The ground was still uneven and scarred from long ago battles.

"So they sent you, Ise-san." Nanao spun around and drew one of her Tantou. There was no one behind her. "So rude. And here I thought you would be more civilized than Kyoraku-kun." Nanao looked over her shoulder. There he stood, not ten feet from her, Aizen Sosuke. "Did you miss me?"

"Not a chance." Nanao gave him a cold glare. "By order of central 46, I have permission to terminate you if you don't cooperate. You are going back, and hopefully under better security." Nanao faced him fully, he was hardly emitting any reiatsu. She could over power him easily.

"I won't be cooperating, but you won't be stopping me either." Aizen pulled out a strange device from within what little robes he had. "They should really have better security around some of Urahara's little devices. Some can be rather dangerous." Aizen took hold of both sides of the device. "Fair well, Isa-san. I'll make sure to cause as little pain to you as I can."

Nanao didn't understand what he was talking about. But if he had a device Urahara had made, it couldn't be good.

She moved towards him.

"Thank you." Nanao was caught off guard by his words. Until she saw the second device in his hand. A high pitch screeching sound came from the small ball. Nanao could feel all of her muscles seize up as she fell to her knees. When the sound stopped, Nanao could feel her own reiatsu coming from it.

"I do not have sufficient power to use this device, but you most certainly do." Aizen took the small ball in his hand and slid it into the machine. "And now to be rid of you."

Nanao could hear the sound of scraping metal. But she couldn't move. Her body felt unresponsive, and drained. She waited for the blade to cut her down, but she was instead greeted by a flurry of pink.

"You will not lay a hand on her, Aizen." Shunsui stood in front of Nanao with one of his blades crossed with Aizen's. He glared at the man in front of him. What had he done to Nanao?

"It matters not if I do it here or there. It just might be easier there, but I would rather finish this quickly." Aizen sighed heavily as he moved away from the man. "But it seems this will have to wait. Fair well Kyoraku-kun. I will be seeing you soon, Ise-san." With that said he turned the handle on the device he was holding. A flash blocked him from view. And then he was gone.

Shunsui sheathed his blade as he turned to his wife. "Nanao? Are you alright? Did he hurt you?" He held her face in his hands as he knelt in front of her.

Nanao smiled weakly at him. "I'm not hurt. I just feel...off."

'That's because he forcefully pulled reiatsu from you.' The couple nodded as Chishitoge explained. 'I wonder what that thing he used was.'

"It was one of Urahara's inventions. So it can't be good-" Nanao suddenly got the strong urge to vomit.

She lost her balance, but Shunsui had her in his arms instantly. "Don't worry Nanao-chan. I've got you. Do you want to go see Isane-chan?"

"Yeah. I think..." Nano stopped when she caught sight of the fear in Shunsui's eyes. "Shunsui?" Nanao reached up to try and catch his attention. But she noticed she could see through her hand. "What?"

Shunsui could see and feel Nanao vanishing from his arms. He could also see how frightened she was. "It's okay Nanao. I will find you, I promise." He saw a small glimmer of hope in her eyes. "I love you."

Nanao smiled at him as the world around her faded into a white landscape. "I love you too."

Shunsui caressed her cheek and kissed her. But the feeling of touching her ended all too soon.

He didn't know how long he stayed kneeling on the hill. But soon he had someone shaking his shoulder. He looked towards the person and was met by green eyes and white hair. "Shunsui? What are you doing?"

Shunsui smiled at his friend weakly. "Just saying goodbye. What are you doing here, Juu-chan."

Jushiro rolled his eyes at his best friend. "Who were you saying goodbye to?" He stood and helped his friend up.

"Just my lovely Nanao-chan." Shunsui smiled sadly as he fixed his sakkat.

"Who?" Jushiro didn't know of anyone named Nanao. Was she Shunsui's latest girlfriend?

Shunsui looked at his friend curiously. "My Nanao-chan." Jushiro still had a confused look on his face. "My wife." His friend's jaw dropped.

"When did you get married?" Jushiro certainly hadn't heard about his friend being engaged. Least of all married.

ShunsuI was starting to worry for his friend. "Let's see...about eight years ago. To the day." Shunsui was half wondering if he needed to take Jushiro to 4th squad.

"Stop!" Shunsui saw someone running towards him. Two people actually. One of them just ran into him. The other stopped a few feet away from him. "Sorry, Kyoraku-Taichou. The boy was just running around. I will-"

"It's okay." Shunsui smiled at Lisa. "I will take care of him." Shunsui placed a hand on his son's head. He seemed to be crying while trying to catch his breath.

When Lisa left he picked up his son and held him tightly as he continued to cry.

"I didn't know you were good with kids." Jushiro watched curiously as his usually lazy friend transformed into a responsible adult. It was a shocking sight to behold.

"Well I do have a certain way with my own son." Shunsui ignored the obvious distressed look his best friend was giving him and looked at his son. "You okay Seto-chan?" He kissed his son's cheek.

"Daddy, why does no one know who I am? No one remembers mommy either." Seto wiped his eyes. He couldn't believe he was acting like a five year old again. But he was scared, and he didn't know what to do.

"I don't know Seto-chan. I don't know." Shunsui hugged his son as he began walking back to their house. And hoping that it was their house. 'Please be safe Nanao.'

The wind picked up and blew Shunsui's sakkat away. He looked up at the darkening sky. 'This doesn't look good.' Lightning crackled across the clouds and thunder boomed through the air.

"Where did his storm come from?" Jushiro handed his friend his hat back. "It doesn't look natural either. Do you think something went wrong at 12th again?" Jushiro was nearly shouting, but it still sounded faint against the howling wind.

*CRACK*

Both men fell to their knees as the ground split and shifted beneath their feet. They could pick up faint screams around them, but the disaster around them was consuming it all.

Seto clung tightly to his father. "Daddy, what's going on?"

Shunsui held his son tightly with one arm and grabbed Jushiro's shoulder with the other. He got a solid foothold on the crumbling earth beneath his feet and shunpoed into the air. He landed in an open courtyard and looked back towards the Sokyoku Hill. It was crumbling into a pile of dirt and rock.

"Maybe Sensei will know what is going on." Jushiro dusted himself off. Today was begining to take a very dramatic turn.

Shunsui looked towards his friend with a surprised face. "Yamaji...is alive?"

Jushiro became very worried for his friend. "Maybe we should go see Retsu-senpai first."

"Retsu-chan is also alive?" Shunsui was as confused as his friend.

"Daddy, who is Yamaji and Retsu-chan?" Seto had heard the names before, but he had never been told who they were.

Shunsui looked toward his on with a smile. "They are very important people. Yamaji is-"

*BOOM*

The ground burst open where the Sokyoku Hill once was. Then began to collapse and fall in on itself. Only a hole remained, then it began to grow and swallow more land.

"Daddy!" Seto shut his eyes and clung to his father tightly.

Shunsui took a step back before turning and running from the hole. He saw Jushiro follow his lead and catch up to him. "Any idea what's going on?" Both men smiled as they had both asked the same question.

"Ukitake-Taichou! Kyoraku-Taichou!" Both men looked ahead of them. Two people stood in their way, but fell into step behind them. "What is going on?" Lisa eyed the small child hugging her Taichou. She recognized him from earlier.

Shunsui didn't really hear Lisa. He was too busy being shocked at who was running beside his best friend. "Kaien-kun is alive as well?"

Kaien gave Kyoraku-Taichou a hurt look. "We just had tea this morning and I'm already dead to you? And here I thought we were drinking buddies."

"Now's not the time to be discussing this!" Jushiro caught himself as he tripped over a large piece of rubble and continued running. "Shunsui, what happened before I found you?" Everything started to go wrong after that, so it was a logical starting point.

"I don't really know. Aizen had escaped from Muken and had used a strange looking device on my lovely Nanao-chan." Katen Kyokotsu had given him a brief synopsis when she told him Nanao was in trouble. "It was probabaly one of Urahara's strange little contraptions."

"Who's Aizen?" Jushiro was starting to think Shunsui messed with something he wasn't suppose to. A lot of strange things tended to happen, and this was most definetly strange.

"What does Urahara-Taichou have to do with any of this?" Lisa was starting to worry for her Taichou a bit. 'Maybe he drank a bit too much this morning?'

Shunsui gave an exaggerated sigh. "Why don't we get to a safer spot first? Then we can discuss whether or not I am losing my mind. Because I would very much like to know that-" He felt something grab his foot and trip him. He landed on his hand and knees so that he wouldn't hurt Seto.

"TAICHOU! DON'T MOVE." Lisa stared with wide eyes. A bone hand was wrapped around Shunsui's ankle. She slowly drew her katana. "Don't move a muscle."

"Put your sword away, shinigami." A deep resonating voice spoke from the ground. The bony hand held fast to Shunsui's foot as the ground beneath it opened up. Shunsui had stood up and was staring down at the now glowing ground beneath his feet. he remained silent as a black hooded figure rose from the ground. A second bony hand grasped Shunsui's wrist as the first released his ankle. "You have something that belongs to me." Shunsui frowned at the skull that spoke to him.

"Who are you?" Shunsui frowned more as he watched flesh begin to grow on the skull. "What do I have that is yours?"

The skull now had a face, the face of an old man. "I am the true god of death, but I am also the god of life. And of time. For without time, life can not become death." The voice became softened and became less raspy as the face continued to regress in age. "And what you have that is mine, is a small life that should not exist here without its creator." The man reached out towards Seto, but Shunsui moved his son out of his reach. Death smiled gently at Shunsui's fatherly instincts. "Now Shunsui, let's not make this difficult. This world does not know who your wife is. That little 'toy' Urahara made, erased her from existence here. Otherwise she would have been torn apart while traveling through time. Unable to exist in any world."

"Then why do I still know her? Why does no one remember Seto? How did Urahara even create anything capable of doing that!?" Shunsui was more yelling out his frustration rather than being mad at Death.

Death placed a hand on Shunsui's shoulder. "Mad men always manage to create the impossible, but sometimes the impossible should stay that way." He gave Seto a sad smile. "You where the only one that saw her as she was erased. That is why you still know who she is, and because you knew, Seto could still exist here. But he can't stay here. I have to take him with me."

Shunsui tensed at Death's words, but a small voice drew him away from his thoughts. "Dad." Shunsui looked towards his son. Seto smiled at his father. "It's okay. Mommy's waiting for me somewhere else." Seto wrapped his arms around his fathers neck as he tried to hide the tears that where stinging his eyes. "I love you daddy."

Shunsui hugged his son tightly. "I don't want to lose you too Seto." Shunsui knew he was crying as he dropped down to his knees. He was trembling while trying not to cry out loud.

Seto stepped away from his father and smiled at him. "You won't. I will always be right here," Seto pointed to where his father's heart was. "Just like mommy."

Death placed a hand on Seto's shoulder. "Are you ready?" Death now looked like he was beginning to age again. Wrinkles formed on his face and his hair was more grey than black. His gaze fell upon Shunsui And he gave him a reassuring smile. "Do not worry, he is in good hands."

Death took Seto's hand and turned his back to Shunsui. Both began walking away. And slowly they began to fade away, till not even a shadow remained. Shunsui just stared after them as tears streamed down his face.

"LOOK OUT!" Shunsui ducked as a sword cut through the air where his head had been.

*ROAR*

Shunsui watched as a Hollow dissolved above him. "What was that!? You were completely spaced out there. What where you day dreaming about?! Why are you crying?" Lisa gave her Taichou a confused look.

Shunsui looked around him. Everything in front of him was completely destroyed. Hollows crawled over the rubble as shinigami tried to subdue them. He wiped his eyes of the moisture that was there. "I don't know Lisa-chan. Probably just a bit of dust." Shunsui got up and dusted himself off.

"You sure you're alright?" Jushiro was worried for his friend. He never dazed off like that usually. "Do you want to go see Retsu-senpai?"

"Nah. Let's get this over with so I can go back to relaxing." Shunsui placed a hand on each of his zanpakutou.

Lisa rolled her eyes. "Of course you only want to do work so you can be lazy." She shook her head at Shunsui's smirk. "Fine. But don't you start relaxing before we have even finished. And remember that invasions can last for more than a few hours."

Shunsui chuckled at Lisa's comment. He knew exactly how long an invasion could last. He just hoped this one didn't last that long.

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Please leave a comment or a question. Let me know what you think or how you liked it. And what parts you liked. Or if you need any clarification on anything.

so how was the added part? i just had quite a few people say that they wanted to know what happened to Seto, so here is what happened. If you guys didn't realize that Nanao going back in time would have meant that Seto didn't exist yet, i decided to create an event so that it was a bit more clear.


	2. Waking Up

I do not own Bleach.

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"Ise-san...Ise-san...ISE-SAN...ISE NANAO!" Nanao jumped from her seat. She looked around as everyone in the room laughed at her expense. Nanao curiously looked around the room. Was she in a classroom? "Still asleep are we?"

"No sir." Nanao looked at the man standing at the front of the room. Was he standing in front of a chalk board? Where was she?

"Well, since you so obviously see no need to pay attention in class. Can you tell me what this kido will do when cast?" Nanao looked at the man, that looked very similar to her kido teacher from the academy, then at the formula written on the baord.

Nanao thought back to that class. She remembered a kido similar to this formula, or was it the same. A few things seemed to be missing from it. She could see everyone turning to look at her and the teacher grow impatient.

"Well? What do you think Ise-san?" Nanao locked eyes with the teacher. Her jaw nearly dropped. One green and one blue eye. Exactly like her old kido teacher.

So she took a shot at it. "It will make Sakura petals fall from the air and create the scent of Sakura petals." Nanao knew her old teacher would pester her if she didn't sound confident. But it wasn't her fault she wasn't confident in her academy days. She would have just found out about her mother.

The teacher's face lit up in surprise. "That is correct." He was about to continue, but noticed the student still hadn't reseated herself. "Is there a problem?"

"It won't work." Nanao spoke flatly. She knew it was either she would get a detention, or the whole class would get an extensive project to do that night. So she decided to take the heat.

The class snickered as the teacher huffed in disbelief. "It will work. And I will show you." The teacher began performing the kido. But soon found himself in a dust cloud and lying on his back. The kido had blown up in his face. But he had expected that. What he hadn't expected was a student to call him out on his mistake.

"Looks like you were right, Nanao-chan." Nanao looked towards the person sitting beside her. She was completely shocked to see a child Ichimaru Gin. "What's the matter? Ya forgot who I was while you was sleepin?" Gin gave his fellow prodigy a closed eye smirk. She was just as smart, if not smarter than, him. But she didn't like to bring attention to herself.

Nanao was drawing a blank. She didn't remember him being in her class. Or was he? She didn't like remembering her academy days. "Of course not, Ichimaru-kun." Nanao looked back towards the front of the room as the teacher brushed himself off as he stood.

"Now then class. It seems I have made an error. Ise-san? Would you mind coming up and correcting my mistake?" The teacher smiled at his most kido capable student. He knew she was the best in the class. And that she preferred not to draw attention to herself.

Nanao looked down nervously as everyone continued to stare at her. She made her way down the stairs slowly. 'When did all of the desks get a tall?' Nanao got to the front a took the piece of chalk the teacher handed her. She looked up at the chalkboard curiously. 'When did I become to short for a chalkboard?'

'Lets just say you just regressed back a bit.' Nanao frowned at her zanpakutou. 'We'll explain later.' Nanao frowned more when she heard Chishitoge begin to snicker.

"Would you like a chair to stand on, Ise-san?" The teacher could see her wondering how she was going to reach certain parts of the formula.

"That would be helpful. Thank you, sensei." Nanao couldn't remember his name, but she hoped she wouldn't have to.

She stood awkwardly as he brought a stool over for her to stand on. Nanao easily climbed the stool. Once she was stable, she began going through the formula again. She fixed mistakes and added pieces as she went through it. It took her about five minutes till she was done and climbed down from the stool.

"Thank you, Ise-san. You may take your seat again." The teacher beamed at his top student. She could easily graduate that year. Along with her fellow prodigy that was also in his class.

Nanao bowed before climbing the stairs back to her seat. She sat down and kept her eyes on the teacher. She didn't want to draw anymore attention to herself.

"Now then. Let's try what Ise-san has corrected." The teacher didn't need to examine her corrections. He knew at first glance that it was right. He performed the kido. Soon light pink petals were falling on the students. "Class dismissed for the day. And can you see me after your last class today, Ise-san?" He wanted to congratulate her. And tell her not to jump ahead of the class by too much.

"Yes sensei." Nanao collected her books and stood to leave.

"Ain't that sad." Nanao looked at Gin curiously. "Even though ya got it right, ya still got a detention. That sucks." Gin smiled at the girl, she seemed different from the other day.

Nanao clutched her books to her chest. "I should have said nothing and let sensei explain what was wrong. I spoke out of line."

"I thought it was much better with ya correctin' him." Gin smiled as he walked beside Nanao out of the classroom. "Do ya want me ta break you out? We are the youngest. So we gotta stick together."

Nanao smiled at him. "Thanks Ichimaru-kun. But I don't think it will be that bad. Kido is my strong point after all."

Gin smirked and opened his eyes slightly. "Keepin' quiet is also a strong point. Why ya suddenly comin' out of yer shell? This is also the first time yer talkin' to me."

Nanao looked away hoping she could come up with a way out of this situation. "Um...well...he...he pointed me out. And the error in his kido was bugging me. And you spoke to me first." Nanao looked at Gin seriously as she adjusted her glasses. She was glad her books were small and light. Otherwise she was sure she would have dropped something.

"Ya got me there. And I was just teasin' ya. No need ta get serious." Gin laughed as they rounded the corner to their next class. "How about ya show what her really made of?"

"What do you mean?" Nanao was worried. What was he planning?

"Beat the teacher as fast as you can." Gin smiled as he watched the teacher placed rags and buckets of water at the edge of the deck.

Nanao looked towards the teacher. He looked like her old Hoho teacher. 'Im just going to assume it is. Considering the last one was.' Nanao sighed as she followed the silver haired boy to the edge of the deck and sat down. 'This is a strange dream.'

* * *

Please leave a comment or a question.


	3. Maybe Not a Dream

I do not own Bleach.

* * *

"Alright class." The instructor looked at his class of first years. They all seemed eager, except one. She seemed to be...bored? "Okay we are starting the basics for shunpo. Can anyone tells me what shunpo is?"

No one raised their hands. The small girl at the front seemed to roll her eyes at his question. He knew this student well. But she was usually at the back keeping quiet. Not at the front acting like she didn't need to be in his class.

"Ise-san." The girl's head snapped up at the mention of her name. "What is shunpo?"

Nanao sighed as she stood to give her answer. "Shunpo is a technique in the Hoho combat skill. It allows the user to move faster than the eye can follow." Nanao sat down and hoped she didn't have to explain more.

"Good. Now would you please help me with a demonstration." The teacher didn't want to let her off that easily. This was the first time she had actually spoken in his class.

Nanao grumbled under her breath.

"You should smile more." Nanao looked toward Gin as she stood up again. "You would look cuter with one."

"Don't you already have a girlfriend?" Nana spoke curtly as she walked out into the courtyard with the teacher.

"Alright class. We are going to play a game of tag. Although to prove that you actually touched your partner." The teacher pulled a marker out of his pocket. "You have to write on their forehead. You can write anything. As long as you are okay with people knowing you wrote it. And anything that you are okay with a teacher seeing." The teacher smiled as the students who had been smiling now looked disappointed.

"Ise-san will help me demonstrate how this game works." The teacher handed Nanao a marker. "Please try and write 'Baka' on my forehead." The teacher tapped his forehead as he smiled at his small student. "Ichimaru-san. Can you tell us when to begin? And also when one of us has something writen on our foreheads please."

"Okay." Gin smiled as he watched them both uncap their markers. "Ready?" He saw them both tense a bit. "Set." The teacher crouched a bit as if to pounce. "Go!"

The teacher took one step and stood behind Nanao. 'When did she get behind me?'

"Stop!" Gin smiled at the writing on one of their foreheads.

The teacher looked towards Gin with confusion. "It's done already? How much did she get written?" The teacher walked towards the deck and picked up the mirror. He saw 'Baka-sama' written in perfect calligraphy. "Wow! Good job Ise-san." He looked towards the student standing beside him. "I didn't even get a mark on you."

Nanao took the mirror the teacher handed her. She nearly lost grip on it. She stared back into violet eyes that were framed by short raven locks. 'I am a child...this is a strange dream.'

'I don't think this is a dream Nanao-chan.' Nanao handed the teacher back the mirror while trying to act normal. But her zanpakutou was worrying her. 'If this was a dream, you should be able to will it to change. Or we should be able to at least. But we can't.'

'What are you saying Chishitoge?' Nanao smiled at Gin. He was looking at her curiously.

'We think you got pulled through time...again.' Nanao sat still as she listened to Chibara's response. 'They are speaking to you.'

Nanao snapped her head up as the teacher laid a hand on her forehead. "You okay there, Ise-san?" He gave his student a smile as she seemed to return to herself. "You shouldn't exhaust yourself so much."

Nanao nodded her head slowly. "Sorry, sensei."

"Nanao-chan must have studied hard to catch sensei." Nanao looked at Gin. He was smiling, but only a little. He looked relieved.

"That she must have. What are you studying, sixth year materials?" The teacher walked back to stand in front of the entire class. He was smiling at the little joke he made. Nanao and Gin were prodigies and were expected to be graduating at the end of the semester.

"She's studying how to make teachers look like idiots!" A student spoke up from somewhere in the back. A ripple of laughter ran through the students.

The teacher joined in on the laughter. "Is that so? What did she do in your last class?"

"Sensei's kido blew up in his face." Gin spoke with a smile as he watched Nanao turn bright red.

The teacher laughed as he pictured his fellow teacher making such a fool of himself in front of his class. "Okay, okay." He calmed down his class. They were still laughing. "Now pair up and play."

Gin sat beside Nanao and watched as everyone else paired up with other people. "You okay, Nanao-chan?"

Nanao was still trying to understand what her zanpakutou had told her. But she pushed the thoughts away to try and not draw anymore attention to herself. "Yeah. Just exhausted myself too much."

"Ya was goin' pretty fast. Couldn't even see ya." Gin smiled at her gently. She seemed lost. "Ya sure yer okay?"

Nanao looked up and saw concern in his icy blue eyes. 'I didn't know he was this nice. What made him change?' She went to answer, but the class was interrupted.

"Excuse me, Tekemi-Sensei. The Headmaster has asked for Ise Nanao and Ichinaru Gin to go to his office." A student stood on the edge of the deck and looked at the teacher standing in the middle of the courtyard.

The teacher frowned a bit. The Headmaster never asked for students to go to his office, unless they had done something. But both of the student were his best. What could he want them for? "Sure. How long should they be?"

"Headmaster said they will be gone for the rest of class." The student bowed and walked out of the class.

"Alright. Ise-san and Ichimaru-san, off to the Headmaster's office. He doesn't like to be left waiting." He shoed off the two smallest students in his class. He hoped they weren't in trouble.

Nanao and Gin collected their books and walked down the hall towards the Headmaster's office. Nanao clutched her books nervously. She never had to go to the Headmaster's office. What had changed this time?

'Did you correct your teacher last time?' Nanao listened to Chishitoge as he asked her questions. 'Did you volunteer last time?'

'No. So I may have drawn too much attention to myself. When I went through the first time, I never said a word. Most of my teachers were surprised that I was graduating with Gin.' Nanao looked beside her. Gin was smiling as if being called in was a normal thing. 'But it looks like it is too late to try and blend in with the background again. Maybe I should try being more outgoing?'

'Maybe.' Nanao smiled as her quiet zanpakutou spoke up. 'We will wait for you in your room.'

'Were you guys planning on trying to find me?' Nanao really hoped they weren't. The last thing she needed was someone finding out she already had a zanpakutou. And not to mention that they were in a twin set.

'We'll talk when you get here.' Nanao frowned at her zanpakutou's statement. She passed it off as Chishitoge being cryptic as usual.

Soon both Nanao and Gin stood in front of the Headmaster's office doors. They both looked at each other questioningly. They didn't know what to do. Nanao took a deep breath before reaching her hand out to knock.

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That's chapter three. And now we know where Nanao is. If you need me to clarify anything, post your question in the reviews. And also let me know what you think while your at it. Thank you.


	4. Way Out

I do not own Bleach.

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Nanao closed her eyes before she moved her hand to knock.

"There is no need to knock." Nanao held herself back from screaming. "You may enter."

Nanao exchanged glances with Gin before he slid the door open. They both walked in and closed the door before walking closer to the Headmaster's desk. Both stared wide eyed at the two old men looking at them.

"Seeing the look youngsters have when they meet with me is priceless." The old man seated behind the oak desk chuckled as he looked at the man standing beside him. "Although, they might also be in awe at seeing the Soutaichou of the Gotei 13 standing before them."

"These are the two prodigies this year?" Nanao looked I amazement at the Soutaichou. He looked to be pretty much the same as she last saw him. But with both of his arms of course. "Do either of you have a zanpakutou?"

"Why do ya ask?" Gin smiled at the two old men. He stopped and frowned when he felt a nudge. He looked over at Nanao. "What?"

"Be more respectful." Nanao frowned at him before turning her attention back to the elders. "I am in possession of my zanpakutou." She smiled as she replied to the two elderly men.

'Nanao what are you doing?' Nanao kept herself from rolling her eyes at Chishitoge.

'We need to get out of here as quickly as possible. And this may be an opportunity.' Nanao kept a smile on her face as she replied to her cat.

'I just hope you know what you're doing.' Nanao reassured her zanpakutou as she brought her attention back to the present.

"Really?!" The Headmaster was very surprised. He knew she was a prodigy. Even more so than Gin, but not by this much. She usually just kept to herself rather than interact with her classmates. He was a bit worried about how she would fair in a squad.

"I also have one. I just don't like people knowin'. That's all." Gin smiled as he knit his fingers together behind his back. He was trying hard to hide his curiosity.

"Do you wish to have them entered into the tournament, Yamamoto?" The Headmaster rested his head on his hands. It was halfway through the year already. And the seventh year tournament was beginning today.

Yamamoto looked at the two small students standing in front of them. To the naked eye, they looked like children, weak and powerless. But he saw their potential. "Yes." He had a brief smile on his face as he saw a spark of curiosity appear in their eyes.

Nanao looked at the two men curiously. "What tournament are you talking about?" Nanao didn't remember hearing about a tournament while she was here. But she had also only been here for a single year.

"The seventh year tournament of course." The Headmaster smiled at the two. "Every year, the seventh years have a chance to show off their skills. And if they have improved enough, the standings in their classes can shift. This is also a time for the Taichous of the Gotei 13 to take a look at the graduates. And see who they wish to offer positions to if they find worthy candidates."

"Taichous will be there?" Gin smiled at the thought of finding the shinigami he had been looking for. He didn't know the mans name or rank, but he knew his face.

"Yes. And Fukutaichous as well. We also award a prize to the tournament winner." Yamamoto was actually looking forward to seeing what the two could do. "Would you both like to enter?"

"Yes." Both said almost as eagerly. They both looked at each other and giggled a bit.

The headmaster joined their giggling. "Then you should both go collect your zanpakutou and report to the Zanjutsu building. I'll make sure your teachers are made aware of where you are. And that your names are added to the roster."

"Um..." Nanao remembered her first class of the day. "I got a detention in my kido class this morning." She looked down and cringed a bit. She was expecting either man to be disappointed with her. She knew she was suppose to have a clean record. But she couldn't change the past. And she had had enough with time traveling.

"How did that happen?" The Headmaster was very confused. She had had a clean record so far. Was it the rumour he had been hearing going through the halls about a teacher blowing up a kido? He smiled thinking how proud the teacher probably was about a student catching his mistake. Especially if it was the teacher he was thinking of. "Don't worry about it. I will send a note to Kizuki-sensei about why you will not be able to make it."

Nanao smiled at the Headmaster. 'He's a bit of a softy.'

"Now run along both of you. The tournament begins in an hour." Yamamoto shoed off the two children.

"Thank you, Yamamoto-Soutaichou, Headmaster." Both Gin and Nanao bowed before leaving the office.

Nanao and Gin laughed as they ran through the empty halls to the dorms. Nanao waved goodbye to Gin as he continued on to his dorm on the next floor up. 'Time to see what they wanted to tell me.'

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Sorry about all of the short chapters. But at least there will be many chapters. I might try to combine some later. But for now it will stay like this. Let me know what you think. So please leave a comment. Thank you.


	5. And Then There Were Three

I do not own Bleach.

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Nanao opened the door to her room and closed it behind her. She looked around at the room she hadn't even pictured in her mind in what felt like centuries. As she looked around, she remembered every detail. Her eyes fell on her bed and she broke into a large grin as she caught sight of the two zanpakutou on it.

She ran over and jumped onto her bed. She clutched her zanpakutou, holding them tightly to her chest. "I still have you guys! It would have been terrible if I didn't. Then I would have to master another zanpakutou...again."

Nanao let her two zanpakutou fall out of her arms. She smiled as two cats appeared on top of them. A purple cat with black stripes pounced on her and cuddled against her neck. "Chishitoge! That tickles!" She hugged the purple cat that was half of her zanpakutou.

"He is happy." Nanao looked towards the black cat with purple stripes. He walked to her outstretched hand and rubbed against it.

Nanao smiled at her zanpakutou. She was so happy to still have them. "So what did you guys want to talk about?" Nanao sat up and pulled Chishitoge onto her lap while Chibara jumped onto her shoulders.

"It's about that guy over there." Chishitoge looked towards the desk in Nanao's room.

Nanao followed the cats gaze. She caught sight of a sword on it. "What is that?"

"Another piece of your soul." Nanao's eyes went wide at the sound of the voice. It was higher pitched then Chibara, Chibara had a pretty deep voice. And lower than Chishitoge's voice, Chishitoge had a very childlike sound to his voice.

Nanao picked up Chishitoge and hoped off of her bed. "Who are you?" She cautiously walked over to her desk. She stood up on her chair and looked down at her desk. A katana with red hilt wrappings lay on it.

"I am your third cat." Nanao watched as a red light came out of the sword. Soon a cat with solid red fur sat on the desk. "And it looks like you can already materialize me." He gave a close mouth grin at the girl and two cats.

"I...have...THREE!" Nanao clamped a hand over her mouth. "How?"

"Well," the cat looked down nervously. "I saw you floating by. And I just felt this connection to you. So I tagged along." His ears were flat against his head and he was curling up into a ball.

Nanao instantly had him in her arms. "It's okay. You can stay. It just means I have something to work on. I'm not that skilled with a katana." Nanao put down the cat and picked up her new zanpakutou. She jumped off of her chair and headed back to her bed. She laid the katana down beside the other two. She frowned when she noticed that none of them were the same length. "When did Chibara become a wakizashi?"

"It makes us a triple daisho." Chibara sat up on Nanao's shoulder. He climbed down and curled up on Nanao's pillow.

"Why am I the smallest?" Chishitoge poked his sword form.

"Because your the sneaky one that finishes the job." Nanao smiled as she scratched him behind his ear. His weak spot. She turned her eyes to the red cat and the red katana. She noticed he had one red eye and one purple eye. She looked towards Chibara and Chishitoge. "Ah." Nanao gasped as she caught sight of their eyes. Chibara had one purple and one black eye. And Chishitoge had one red and one black eye. "I guess you guys did change a little. Looks like he is your brother."

"Do you know my name?" The red cat walked timidly up to the little girl that was his master. His eyes pleaded with her.

Nanao smiled as she scratched the cat under his chin. His eyes closed and he purred loudly. "You like that, Gaikotsu?" Nanao didn't know where she got the name. But it seemed to fit him.

"That's a creepy name. Definitely one of us." Chishitoge climbed over the red cat. He smiled at him with his usual toothy grin.

Nanao smiled as Chibara joined the little cat pile that was forming. "It's great to still have you guys."

"But you know what that means?" Chishitoge looked up at Nanao with a serious face. "Aizen has his zanpakutou as well."

Nanao gasped as she remembered what happened before she found herself reliving her academy days. "This is bad. He is probably still a Fukutaichou. And he knows what will happen. We need to get to Seireitei and warn them."

"But will they believe you?" Nanao looked towards her new cat. "Who will they be more inclined to believe? A Fukutaichou that has served them for many years, or a child that is still at the academy?" Gaikotsu understood her need to warn them, but they needed to be careful. "He may have already taken precautions against us trying to stop him."

Nanao thought carefully about what her zanpakutou had said.

He was right. No matter wha she said. Aizen could just talk his way out of it. He was a snake like that. She growled under her breath.

"Relax Nanao. Want to see something?" Nanao looked towards her purple cat.

She felt her soul being pulled into herself. She let him pull her.

She opened her eyes to find herself in a circle of light. She smiled as she stood up. She took a step out of the light and smiled wider as she caught sight of the dolls around her. And now there where some dolls that where basically skeletons, but they still had eyes.

"What do you think?" Gaikotsu walked up the air to the head of a doll and laid down.

Nanao smiled as she turned around and looked everywhere. "It's like it was never destroyed-" Nanao stopped. "Shunsui...I'm gone. Do you think he is alright? I basically ripped my soul away from his."

"No." Nanao looked up to find Chibara on her shoulder. "It was more like fading. As if you never existed. His inner world probably went back to how it was before."

"Wow. I didn't think he could talk that much." Chishitoge and Nanao giggled at Gaikotsu's comment.

"Marionette's Graveyard. The lost toy box and childhood of mine." Nanao ran her hand over the doll's skin as she walked. She kept walking till she got to the familiar ring of dolls, and the birdcage. "What happend to the swing?" Nanao looked at the web that spread over most of the inside of the cage.

"Don't know. This was here when we woke up." Chishitoge jumped onto the web. "It's quite comfortable." Chishitoge curled up in a ball as Gaikotsu and Chibara joined him on the web.

Nanao shrugged and climbed up with her zanpakutou. She was surprised how easy it was to move on it. She laid back and relaxed. "This is comfortable. It just cradles you. I may have to get one of these for my room."

"I'm sure you can figure out something." Gaikotsu curled up with his brothers.

Nanao closed her eyes. She was happy and at peace. But peace could easily be interrupted.

*KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK*

Nanao sat up and looked up at her door. Then at her clock. The tournament was in twenty minutes. "Just a minute! She yelled as she hopped off of her bed and grabbed her three zanpakutou. She slid her wakizashi into her belt loop.

"Why are you taking Chibara?" Chishitoge looked at Nanao with a depressed look.

"Because he can restrain himself. Unlike you. And sorry Gaikotsu. But as I said. I'm not that skilled with a katana. And it is too big for me right now." Nanao gave both of them an apologetic look before carrying the two other swords to her closet and hiding them. "Come on. Time to go back. You guys can watch from Marionette's Graveyard. And please leave the Hollow powers alone this time. Got it?"

"Got it." The three cats began to fade away as Nanao walked to her door.

She opened it once they had disappeared. "Hey Ichimaru-kun."

"Ready to go, Nanao-chan?" Gin smiled at her. She seemed flustered, or out of breath.

Nanao returned his smile as she took a deep breath. "Yep. Let's go!" Nanao shut her door and walked along side Gin. 'Lets get this over with.'

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Please leave a comment or a question. Any time of feed back is great.


	6. Meeting Again

I do not own Bleach.

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Nanao sat down beside Gin. They had just checked in with the teacher that was running the tournament. They were in the last group of students. So they had a long time to wait. She passed Gin the meat bun she had gotten from the officials tent for the participant's lunches.

"Thanks Nanao-chan." Gin smiled as he took the steaming bun Nanao offered him.

Nanao smiled as she sat beside him and dangled her feet over the edge of the walkway. She took a bite of her bun and smiled as she savoured it's flavour.

The two sat in silence as they watched the matches progress. There were four arenas were tournaments were taking place. So eight students went at a time.

Nanao finished off her bun as the match they were watching finished. "We should head down soon. We are in the next group."

Gin nodded as he stuffed the last of his bun into his mouth.

The both stood and made their way through the crowd of seniors. Most of the seniors didn't notice them. But the few that did, sneered at them.

Nanao dragged Gin past them. She didn't want him to cause a scene. They made it to the waiting area without any incidents.

"Alright. We have Matsumo vs. Setishi on floor one. Ichimaru vs. Hamashi on floor two. Gomotsu vs. Akashi on floor three. And Hoshima vs. Ise." The teacher read off the names of the last students to participate in the senior tournament.

Nanao waved to Gin as he headed off to his match. Nanao walked down the hall to her own match. When she got there, she found herself facing off against a large muscular guy. 'Great. I get an 11th squad candidate.'

"This is my opponent!" The large man laughed as Nanao walked onto the sparring mat. "You have got to be kidding. This is going to be too easy."

Nanao fixed him with a glare.

"Aww. She's trying to look intimidating." He continued to laugh at the child that was his opponent.

Nanao pursed her lips. She went to take off her glasses. 'Calm down there Nanao-chan. You can take him down without doing that.' Nanao sighed as she adjusted her glasses.

"Take your position." The teacher on the tower looked at the final pairings for the round. He had a view of all of the matches. Just like the platform above him that held all of the Gotei 13 members present that day. He waited till all of the pairs were ready. "Begin!"

Nanao felt her opponent move. She sidestepped his slash and disarmed him by kneeing him in the chin. Nanao took two steps back and waited to see if he would get up.

He did. Hoshima staggered to his feet. "You think that would keep me down. Didn't even feel it."

"You should have stayed down." Nanao relaxed as she watched him continue to fight to just stay standing.

Hoshima yelled as he charged at the small girl. He used shunpo to get behind her. He lashed out with his fist.

Nanao saw him move to behind her. She ducked under his punch, grabbed his arm, and flipped him over her shoulder. She saw he was still trying to move. 'Fine.' She gave him a swift punch and he was out cold.

"Winner, Ise Nanao." The teacher was stunned at her performance. The other freshman had also done surprisingly well in his match.

Nanao walked towards the waiting area as medics carried her opponent to the medical area. She saw Gin smiling at her. "How long did you take?"

"How do ya know I won?" Gin asked her with a smile.

"Because most of the time only winners walk out of their matches." Nanao walked beside him as they left the waiting area and headed to the courtyard to see the match schedule for the next day.

They watched as all of the students waited for the schedule to be posted. The crowd parted as the teacher made his way to the board. He turned and looked at everyone first. "The final matches will be tomorrow afternoon, if you were named the victor of your match. Final platings for all of the other participants will be tomorrow morning."

Nanao and Gin sighed. They didn't have to try and see the schedule. They just had to be back tomorrow afternoon.

"So what do ya want to do now?" Gin looked at Nanao as they walked down the hall.

"Don't know. Maybe take a nap. It's quite nice outside. The Sakura trees should be in bloom." Nanao looked out into another courtyard. This one had a large peach tree with benches around it.

"Must be nice to be a student." Both Gin and Nanao turned around. They didn't know who the man behind them was. He wore a pink kimono and a sakkat. "A nap sounds nice right now."

"We have work to do back at the division, Taichou." The woman beside him pushed up her glasses. She examined the two students. "You both did very well in your matches."

"Thank you very much." Nanao smiled at the two. It hurt her to see them. She knew them both well, but neither knew her at all.

"If ya don't mind my askin'. But who are ya?" Gin looked at the two. They were wearing shinigami uniforms.

"I don't mind at all. It is rude for someone not to introduce themselves."the man in pink tipped his hat to them and gave them a smile. "Kyoraku Shunsui, 8th squad Taichou."

"8th squad Fukutaichou, Yadomaru Lisa." Lisa looked at the two. Neither seemed all to be in awe at meeting a Taichou. "He isn't the first Taichou you have met today is he?"

Both of them shook their heads. Shunsui sighed. "Wonder which one beat me. I Was hoping to meet you both first. You both have the attention of most of the Taichous. It's not every year that there is a prodigy. And never have there been two at once."

"You shouldn't feel too bad, Kyoraku-Taichou. We met with Yamamoto-Soutaichou before we were entered into the tournament." Nanao gave him a weak smile. She tried hard not to break into tears. She hadn't called Shunsui by his title in years.

Shunsui perked up a bit. "Ah. So it was just Yamaji that beat me." Shunsui looked around the hall. "Well, don't mind us. Have a good day." Shunsui waved as he walked down the hall.

Nanao and Gin watched him leave.

"Never thought a Taichou would wear pink." Gin was most surprised to see that. "What do you think of him?" Gin looked curiously at Nanao. She was shaking a bit. "You okay Nanao-chan."

'I can't.' Nanao turned and ran down the hallway. She kept running as she heard people yelling after her. She stops once she is out of breath. She didn't use shunpo, it would have drawn too much attention. She fell to her knees while trying to catch her breath and keep herself from crying. Crying wouldn't help her at all.

"Are you alright?" Nanao turned and found herself looking at Shunsui's best friend. "You seem upset. Do you want to talk about it." Jushiro knelt down beside beside the girl. She looked like she was about to cry.

"What have you done?" Nanao and Jushiro looked up to see a man with long blond hair and a white haori walking towards them. "Aren't you usually the gentle one, Jushiro? And here I find you making little girls cry."

"Juu-chan made a little girl cry. That isn't like Juu-chan at all, Shinji." Nanao looked away once she heard Shunsui's voice. Shunsui looked at the small girl Jushiro was kneeling beside. He recognized her easily. "Hello again sweet heart." He gave her a smile, but she didn't look at him. She seemed to be curling up into a ball more.

Jushiro gave his friend a flat look. "What did you do?"

Shunsui held his hands up and took a step back. "Nothing. She was fine when I last saw her. And that was about five minutes ago."

"And to think you only got this far away in five minutes." The three Captains looked to see three people in shinigami uniforms walk towards them. "Please do not make this more difficult than it has to, Taichou." Lisa fixed her glasses

"Ukitake-Taichou!" The second shinigami ran up to the three Taichous. He was slightly out of breath. "Please don't leave me behind. What if-"

"Nothing happened, Shiba-kun." Jushiro smiled fondly at his Fukutaichou. He understood the man's worry about his health. But he had been dealing with it himself for centuries.

"And who would this be." Nanao's eyes widened as she caught sight of the last Fukutaichou. Aizen gave her a smile.

Nanao hid behind Jushiro.

"You shouldn't be so creepy, Sosuke." Shinji frowned at his Fukutaichou. He had been acting weird today. "If you do then she won't want to join 5th squad."

"Nanao-chan is just shy." Everyone was surprised by the sudden appearance of a silver haired boy. "Sorry fer sneakin' up on everyone." Gin have them all a closed eye smile.

"Stop calling me Nanao-chan." Nanao was starting to get didn't mind Shunsui calling her that. But not any one else.

"But Nanao-chan is such a cute name. And Nanao-chan is very cute." Shunsui smiled at the little girl. She seemed to smile at his statement. Was that even a bit of blush?

Lisa tapped the top of Shunsui's head with the book in her arms. "Don't go scaring her either, Taichou."

"What's everyone standing around for?" The group parted a bit to show a muscular white haired man walking toward at he group. He wore a sleeveless shinigami uniform and a sleeveless haori. "Who're the kids?"

"They're cute." Nanao turned and caught sight of a green haired girl not even an inch away from her face.

Nanao couldn't help the squeak that escaped her lips. Her emotions weren't helping her. Nanao felt her foot catch inside her uniform. She fell backwards, but didn't hit the ground.

"I got you, Nanao-chan." Lisa winked at Nanao. She seemed to be rather distant at the moment.

"Strange. She usually isn't this jumpy." Gin frowned at his new friend. He had seen how she would act in class. And this wasn't like her.

"I'm sure she is just overwhelmed." Aizen spoke calmly. He turned his gaze back to Nanao. Her eyes met his. "She has met so many important people. And is probably trying to make sure she remembers us all." Aizen smiled gently. He couldn't have been more happy to see what state she was in. She was a helpless child.

Shunsui saw Nanao look away after Aizen spoke. Did she seem...pale? He knelt down in front of her and placed a hand on her forehead. "You okay, Nanao-chan?" He gave her a gentle smile, he wanted to protect her, from everything.

Nanao could feel herself breaking down again. She had to get out of here.

Nanao stood and backed away from Shunsui's hand. "Thank you for your concern. I am going to go see the nurse." She stepped into shunpo and left the area as fast as she could. She didn't care if she gave herself away. She just needed to get away from him.

Lisa stepped beside her Taichou. He had moved to follow the small girl. But had stopped. "Did you lose her?" Lisa didn't think it was possible. Most of the Taichous had trouble catching the pink clad man.

Shunsui nodded his head. How fast was that girl?

"I'm guessing you want her in 8th squad." Lisa had seen the gentleness he had used when dealing with Nanao. He cared for the girl, even if he had only just met her.

"It will be very difficult. Especially after that." Shunsui pointed in the direction of the school. He could just barely pick up Nanao's reiatsu signature. He didn't know what it was about her reiatsu, but it felt similar to his own. Childlike and playful, but dangerous.

Lisa fixed her glasses and smiled at her Taichou. "Don't worry about it. In the end, it is her decision. As long as you make a good impression, it'll be fine."

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Please leave a comment...or something. I love feedback. And I don't care how crazy you sound when you write it. They are the best reviews to read.


	7. Gone

I do not own Bleach.

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Nanao woke up later than she normally did the next day. Her eyes were sore from having cried most of the night. She wasn't looking forward to today. She would probably see Shunsui again. And Aizen.

She got up and got dressed, but didn't leave her room. She just sat at her desk and worked on homework. She had nothing else to do. It was a day off today.

She didn't know how much time had passed when there was a sudden knock on her door. She walked over to her door and opened it. No one was there. She looked around and saw no one.

She caught sight of something on her door. As a breeze blew past her. She pulled the letter off of her door and walked back into her room.

"What is this?" She tore open the letter and pulled out the single piece of paper that was inside.

'Please meet me in the outside courtyard at lunch. I want to tell you something important.  
Secret admirer'

Nanao rolled her eyes at the note. She didn't have time for stuff like this. But she couldn't help but be curious about who wrote the note.

She looked at the clock on her desk. She had enough time to go meet him, come back and get her zanpakutou, go to lunch, and be on time to the tournament. She put the note on her desk beside Chibara.

'You should take me with you.' Nanao ran a hand over her wakizashi.

"I can't. Students can't carry around zanpakutou unless they are going to a class that requires them, or heading to the tournament." Nanao ran over to her door. "I'll be back soon." She whispered over her shoulder before opening the door and leaving her room.

Nanao got to the courtyard quickly. No one was there.

"So you actually showed up." Nanao looked towards the voice. She frowned when she saw her opponent from the previous day. "So you're just like any other girl."

"What do you want, Hoshima-senpai?" Nanao crossed her arms as she glared at him. She was in no mood to deal with him.

"Payback." Hoshima gave the small girl a toothy grin. He was going to enjoy getting her back for humiliating him. He cracked his knuckles as he thought of what he could do.

"So you really are a meathead." Nanao sighed as she watched him. He didn't seem to realize she was stronger than him.

"I am not a meathead!" Hoshima growled at the brat in front of him. "I am the strongest senior!"

"That may be right." Nanao put her hands on her hips. "But you also got beaten by a freshman. And only meatheads look for payback or revenge."

Hoshima growled as he ran at the child. He had had enough of her talk back.

Nanao sighed as she pointed her hands at him. "Let's keep you still of a while. Bakudo 99, part 1: Kin." Nanao watched as black bands wrapped around the running student. He was moving slow enough that she could catch him. She stood still as talismans landed on the bands and pulled the senior to the ground.

Hoshima looked at the kido that was holding him down. He couldn't believe what had just happened. "How...how did you do that? You're just a freshman! How did you pull off a kido like that with no incantation?!"

Nanao smiled as she fixed her glasses. "Meatheads don't need to know such things." Nanao gave him a smirk before she left the courtyard and headed back to her room.

She walked into her room and looked over at her desk. But something was wrong. There was only the note on her desk. "Chibara!" Nanao ran over to her desk to make sure she wasn't seeing things. She wasn't. 'Chibara!?'

'He isn't here Nanao.' Nanao heard the worry in Chishitoge's voice. 'We don't know where he is.'

'What?!' Nanao ran over to her bed and threw the covers off. She threw her pillows off. Then the mattress. Nothing.

'Nanao...' She turned and threw everything back on her bed. Then went through her drawers. She emptied them all. Nothing. 'Nanao.' She ignored Chishitoge. As she threw all of her clothes onto her bed and moved to her closet. Soon it was empty as well. 'Nanao!' Nanao could feel her reiatsu begin to unhinge itself. She gripped her two zanpakutou that where in her closet.

'He's gone. He's really gone.' Nanao felt tears roll down her face. She hugged her katana and tanto.

'We'll find him. And we'll make the bastard who took him pay.' Nanao felt the blood lust of her zanpakutous rise with her own.

*KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK*

Nanao looked towards her door. She tucked her two zanpakutou away in her closet and shut the door to it. She made her way through the mess that was now her room to the door. She opened it and saw Gin standing there.

Gin saw her tears stained face and knew something was wrong. "Nanao-chan? What happened?" Gin could see the state her room was in. 'What was she looking for?'

Nanao wiped the tears that were still falling from her eyes away as she took a shaky breath. "Chibara is missing."

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Sorry for another short chapter. But please let me know what you think of it.


	8. The Plan

I do not own Bleach.

* * *

Gin looked at her in surprise. "Is Chibara yer zanpakutou?" He watched as Nanao gave him a shaky nod. "Are ya sure he isn't somewhere in this mess?"

"I'm sure. I made this mess looking for him." Nanao wiped her tears again, but her sleeve was soaked. So it didn't help much.

"It's gonna be okay. We will find him." Gin put a hand on her shoulder and gave her a genuine smile.

"Thank you, Ichimaru-kun." Nanao smiled at him through her tears. This was not a good start to her day.

*THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD THUD*

Nanao and Gin looked above them as they heard running feet. Nanao acted on instinct and pulled Gin into her room before closing the door. They both pressed their ears to the door and listened as the footsteps faded and came back.

"Honoda! Is it true?" They both heard a voice shout out in front of the door.

They heard shushing coming from a group. "Not so loud Migari-san. And yes it is."

"So senpai really stole the zanpakutou of one of the prodigies?" Nanao and Gin listened to the conversation progress.

"Yeah. And he is schedule to fight the little brat his afternoon." They heard the voice they assumed came from the one named Honoda. "And he is going to use it in their fight. And if she wins, he's gonna break it."

Nanao didn't listen to the rest of the conversation. She was too busy trying not to throw up. Or walk out of her room and torture the students till they told her where to find the one that took Chibara.

Gin notice the mix of rage and horror on Nanao's face. He pulled her away from the door and sat her down on the mess that was her bed. "Don't worry Nanao-chan. There is still an hour before the match. We have time to find him. He's is probably just hidden somewhere. I'm sure you can find him easily."

Nanao shook her head as she calmed herself down. "I've already tried. I can't hear him. Which means they have him surrounded by sekkiseki stone." She pulled her knees up to her chest and rested her chin on them. "What am I going to do. I am not throwing my match, but I can't even think about them doing that to Chibara. He might kill them before that." Nanao had forgotten how scary her quiet cat could be. He was worse than his brother at times.

"We can tell a teacher." Gin felt stupid for not suggesting that earlier.

Nanao shook her head again. "Who would they believe. We are first years. They've known the seniors for seven years. Plus the seniors know the teachers better."

"True." Gin sat down beside her and tried to think f another plan. Gin smiled at a thought. "Do you have Shikai?"

Nanao met his eyes and saw the mischievous look he had. "Yeah. Why?"

Gin's smile widened. "One way to win a match is by activating your Shikai. If your opponent doesn't have Shikai, you win automatically." Gin saw Nanao get the idea of what he had in mind. "And I'm sure that would be humiliating. Not only losing to a freshmen in a tournament, but also seeing the freshmen being more skilled than him. That will be a big blow to his pride."

Nanao smiled at his plan. She could also feel Chishitoge and Gaikotsu agree with the plan. 'Just make sure you keep the bloodlust in check.' Chishitoge spoke in a warning tone. 'Chibara doesn't like being handled by unfamiliar people. He will want to kill him. Which means that the playground will be even more potent.'

'I understand. And remember, this isn't the first time. But I hope it is the last.' Nanao was glad she didn't remember most of what happened the last time Chibara got stolen. All she remembered was how much blood there was. And how scared everyone else had looked.

"This will also give us a good standing for the round after this one. The semifinals." Gin smiled as he helped Nanao clean up her room. "The teachers will probably want to see which of us is stronger. So there is a good chance we won't face each other till the final match of the tournament."

"Wouldn't that be great. The finalists in the senior tournament are a pair of freshmen." Nanao and Gin laughed as they cleaned.

Gin looked at the clock he was placing on Nanao's desk. "Looks like it is time to go."

"Okay." Nanao closed her drawer and walked towards the door with Gin. She closed it and took a deep breath.

Gin put an arm around her shoulder. "It'll be alright, Nanao-chan."

She didn't realize he could be such a nice guy. 'I will keep him from becoming who he was. Even if I have to go with Aizen to Hueco Mondo myself.' Nanao smiled at him. "Thank you, Ichimaru-kun."

"You can call me Gin. Since I'm already calling you Nanao-chan." Gin chuckled at how up tight she was. That was the Nanao he knew from the first half of the year.

"Are you sure?" Nanao asked him with surprise. She didn't think they had gotten that close. A nod from the silver haired boy reassured her that t was fine. "Thank you, Gin-kun."

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Thank you for reading this far. More action coming up next. Along with the reveal of Nanao's Shikai...if she can do it. ;)


	9. Payback

I do not own Bleach.

* * *

Nanao stood and watched her friend fight in his match. He was against a female student today. She leaned against the bars and watched as Gin danced around the girl. He was playing with her.

"Good afternoon, Nanao-chan." Nanao turned and looked at the group of people walking towards her. She saw Shunsui walking in front with Lisa beside him. "Are you feeling better today?"

Nanao gave him a smile and nodded at him. "Thank you for your concern, Kyoraku-Taichou." Nanao turned her gaze to Lisa. The woman seemed like she wanted to ask a question. "Is something the matter, Yadomaru-Fukutaichou?"

"Where is your zanpakutou?" Lisa had noticed the girl's wakizashi in her match yesterday. The girl didn't have need of it then.

Nanao gave her another smile. "I don't need it today. I already knocked the strongest senior out of the tournament."

"You sure that is a good idea." Nanao turned to the blond Taichou that was leaning over the railing. Shinji was watching Gin finally ending his match. "Just cause you didn't need it last time, doesn't mean you won't need it this time."

"Hirako-Taichou is right, Ise-san." Nanao tensed a bit when Aizen stepped beside Lisa. "Even a cornered animal can kill."

"Then I will try to end it swiftly." Nanao gave them all a smile before bowing to them. "I'm off." Nanao waved as she ran towards the stairs.

Lisa leaned on the railing beside her Taichou. "Do you believe what she said? About not needing her zanpakutou." She looked at him from the corner of her eyes.

Shunsui watched as Nanao ran over to the waiting area for the tournament. He gave a sigh as he lost sight of her. "Not at all. But it is strange though. She didn't seem worried or tense about lying to us." Shunsui smiled as he tipped his hat to cover more of his face and neck from the afternoon sun. "She knows how to bluff. And bluff really well. If it had been with anyone other than the two of us, it would have worked. But for some reason, I think she knew that."

Shunsui looked back down as he caught sight of the small girl he had been talking about. She was facing another male, but this one seemed to be more of a strategist. He was slim and not very muscular. But he held himself like a predator. 'Don't take risks, Nanao-chan.'

Nanao looked up with her eyes and noticed Shunsui and Lisa watching her. She sighed as she wish she had been assigned to a different arena. She caught sight of Gin joining them and waved to them.

"Take your positions!" Nanao stepped up to the centre of the ring as the supervisor shouted. Nanao noticed Chibara sitting on the man's waist. The man seemed to be smirking at her. Like he had an assured victory. "Begin!"

Neither Nanao nor her opponent moved. Nanao reached out with her mnd tentatively. 'Chibara?'

'I'm here.' Nanao noticed the growl in his voice. He wasn't happy.

'Chibara. I have an important question.' Nanao felt her zanpakutou calm and listen. 'Can I use just you in Shikai form? Or must I summon you and your brother at once?'

'We have never thought of trying such a thing.' Chibara tried to concentrate while keeping down his bloodlust. 'I can not hold back much longer.

"Aren't you going to attack?" Nanao glared at the man holding her zanpakutou. "You seem to be trying to make a decision."

'Stay calm for a bit longer.' Nanao looked at him with an icy look. "I don't attack unarmed opponents." Nanao watched as his face turned red. He was another hothead.

"I am not unarmed." He drew the wakizashi that was at his side. It felt heavy in his hand. But he was able to hold it. "Now will you attack?"

"Nope." Nanao smirked at him. "I don't attack unarmed opponents." She noticed she had the attention of all of the Taichous and Fukutaichous. "Let me show you." Nanao pulled off her glasses and let her reiatsu rise a bit. She held the glasses in her hand. So she was at about half power instead of only a fifth. "Madness Rises Through The Blood Soaked Ground, Chibara."

Nanao watched as the wakizashi in her opponents hand disintegrated into a purple most and flew towards her. She held her hands out and the most wrapped around them. The mist solidified into a pair of studded cuffs. She gave him another smirk before dropping her hands.

Nanao watched as her opponent yelled out and ran at her. She smiled normally. "Playground Open." Nanao sang out like a child. A black circle spread out from beneath her feet and covered the whole ring. She watched as her opponent continued to run at her. "Karma Doll."

Nanao stood still as he got closer to her. She watched as he flash stepped in front of her. She just smiled as he punched at her face. Nanao felt it hit her face, but she felt no pain.

Her opponent on the other hand. He fell backwards and held his bleeding nose. He was sure he had punched the little brat. But she just smiled at him as if he had never punched her. "What the hell did you do?!" He spit out blood that had dripped into his mouth.

"You shouldn't do that." Nanao could feel her bloodlust rise. She couldn't hold it back. She heard the cracking of her glasses and felt them shatter in her hand. She watched as he shook his hand out and more blood seep into the black and purple mist. She felt her reiatsu skyrocket. But she didn't care anymore. She was having too much fun. "Shall we play." Nanao gave him a wide grin while putting her hands behind her back.

She suddenly felt another reiatsu press against hers. It was hot. Really really hot. She felt her own reiatsu being suppressed.

'Nanao. Calm yourself.' Nanao snapped back to herself as her zanpakutou spoke. 'It is over.'

Nanao lowered her reiatsu drastically. She felt her legs sway, so she let herself fall and closed her eyes. This could work well for her. Feigning being unconscious.

Nanao felt herself get caught. She could tell by the smell of fresh cut grass, Sakura flowers, and sake who it was. It was Shunsui. She couldn't help but feel sad at how much she had missed being in his arms.

'Chibara. Where are you?' Nanao hoped no one would just carelessly pick him up. She had made sure to real ease her Shikai when she fell.

'I am in Lisa-san's hands. I am safe. As are you.' Nanao was grateful it was Lisa that had collected her zanpakutou. Anyone else may have been injured.

"Is she alright, Taichou." Lisa looked at the small girl in Shunsui's arms with worry. Her reiatsu had reached the level of a Taichou at least.

Shunsui smiled down at the girl in his arms. She was breathing regularly and evenly. She was just unconscious, sleeping really. "She's fine. Just resting after such an intense match."

"A match that should have ended once she released." All eyes were drawn to the old man walking out onto the ring. He looked up at the teacher supervisor. "Pay more attention next time and less time staring in awe." He growled at the young teacher before turning to Shunsui. "How is Ise Nanao?"

Shunsui smiled at his old teacher. "She is fine. Just unaccustomed to having someone else suppress her reiatsu. It seems her glasses did that for her." Shunsui felt Nanao stir a bit. But she didn't wake.

Yamamoto nodded as he turned back to the entrance of the training arenas. "You should take her to the nurses office to rest."

"Will do. Come along, Lisa-chan." Shunsui walked as smoothly as he could so as not to wake the sleeping girl in his arms.

"Do ya know the way?" Shunsui looked down at the silver haired boy now walking beside him. Gin have the Taichou a grin. He wasn't a bad guy. A bit strange, but trustworthy.

"Of course I do. I went here once myself. But that was a long, long time ago." Shunsui smiled as the young prodigy follow him. He was happy he was getting to know both of them well. It would drive Shinji up the walls. 'I can't wait to see his face.'

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Please leave me some feedback. I love feedback.


	10. Safety

I do not own Bleach.

* * *

Shunsui eyed the small boy from the corner of his eyes as they walked down the hall. "Say, Gin-chan?"

"Do you call everyone 'chan'?" Gin gave the pink clad Taichou a smile.

"Yep. Anyway. Can you tell me how a senior had Nanao's zanpakutou before the match?" Shunsui was still trying to piece together how that was possible. Most of the time zanpakutous didn't allow anyone but their masters to hold them. He was still surprised Lisa could hold the zanpakutou. "And how was he able to hold onto it?"

"Cause he stole it from her room." Gin dropped the smile on his face. He felt like the senior deserved more than what he got. "Nanao-chan was very worried. She did say something about her zanpakutou possibly killin' people. And he used sekkiseki stone. And Nanao-chan was probably tellin' her zanpakutou not to kill him." Gin kept his eyes on the floor in front of him. He didn't know if Nanao would be okay with him telling the Taichou this.

"I see." Shunsui looked down at the small girl. She seemed so innocent and pure, yet she had such a deadly zanpakutou. And he had felt just how deadly minutes ago. "I assume you both found out about this before the match." He got a nod from the boy. "How did you find out?"

"A group of idiots. They were being very loud. Not payin' much attention to where they were." Gin smiled up at the Taichou. He looked back down and frowned. "They also said that if Nanao won the match somehow...he was gonna break her zanpakutou in front of her."

Shunsui frowned as well. Breaking someone's zanpakutou was cruel. To both the zanpakutou and the wielder. "Poor little Nanao-chan."

"But she certainly paid them back ten fold." Lisa spoke up as they walked up to the nurses office.

The three of them laughed as they walked up to the door. They backed up as the door opened and two figure walked out of the door. "I'm telling you Tatima-sensei, she used a level 90 with no incantation! I'm not making this up!"

"That must have been terrifying dear." The nurse gave him a sympathetic smile as she patted his hand. "How go back to your room and rest. And make sure to drink lots of fluids."

"It was scary! She was like a little demon! She even smiled like one!" Hoshima watched as the nurse waved at him and walked back into the office.

"What are you drinking?" Shunsui watched as the student spun around in surprise. "Must be something strong if it makes you see that." Shunsui smiled at the student. He seemed completely flustered by the appearance of a Taichou beside him.

Hoshima was completely shocked. He was speaking to a Taichou. He quickly bowed and stepped out of the way of the door to the nurses office. He guessed that was where he was going. "Sorry for being in your way, Taichou-san."

"Don't worry about it. Just go back to your room and rest. It sounds like you had a traumatic day." Shunsui smiled at the boy as he ran off. Shunsui walked to the office door. He smiled at Gin when the child opened the door for him.

The nurse looked up from her paperwork. She was surprised to see a shinigami Taichou walk into her office. "Can I help you, Taichou?" She gave him a warm smile as she walked around her desk.

"Nanao-chan here just had her reiatsu suppressed. She just needs monitored rest for a bit." Shunsui smiled at the nurse. He had learned from a certain Taichou to be very respectful of people in the medical field.

"Being her back here." The nurse waved him to one of the beds in the office. She smiled as the Taichou gently laid the young girl down on the bed. She couldn't help the laugh that escaped when the Taichou's pink kimono slipped from his shoulder. The small girl had it in a tight grip. "Here. I can-"

"It's okay." Shunsui slipped off the rest of his kimono and laid it on top of Nanao. She seemed to relax more after being wrapped in it. "I'm not going anywhere until my precious Nanao-chan is okay."

"Nanao-chan would have yelled at ya fer that." Gin gave the Taichou a smile. He knew exactly how Nanao would react to his statement. He had seen it many times before.

"Ise-san would never be that disrespectful to a Taichou." The nurse seemed flabbergasted that the young boy would think such things. She knew that Nanao was always respectful to everyone that deserved her respect.

The nurse began checking Nanao over to make sure the girl was alright.

"But it's the truth." Gin sat down on one of the chairs. "Nanao-chan doesn't like anyone saying she is theirs. She kinda has an emotional breakdown every time I ask her about it. And a few times she has acted out if the person persists. One senpai kept saying she was his precious Nanao-chan. She kept tellin' him ta stop. She ended up hittin' him with a book before he finally left her alone."

Shunsui and Lisa shared a look. Shunsui smiled and Lisa rolled her eyes. They had learned to read each other's body language. They had been Taichou and Fukutaichou for quite sometime now.

The nurse smoothed over Nanao's hair as she finished her check. "Ise-san is will be just fine. Can I ask you to stay here till she wakes up? I have a few errands I need to run."

"Thank you for checking Nanao-chan. And I would love to stay and watch over my precious Nanao-chan." Shunsui smiled at the nurse as she walked out of the curtained off room. He pulled a chair beside Nanao's bed and sat down. "She's much too cute when she is sleeping."

Lisa dropped her book on his head. "Don't get any ideas. She is a child."

"At least Nanao is alright. I'm gonna go check the board to see when we are fighting tomorrow." Gin hopped of his chair and smiled at the two shinigami. He knew Nanao would be fine with them. "Please look after her. She is a precious friend to me."

Shunsui gave the boy a gentle smile. "Don't worry. She is safe with us."

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And I am too giddy. A really awesome and terrible part is coming up. Stay tuned for it. And please give me some feed back.


	11. Sweet Dreams

I do not own Bleach.

* * *

Shunsui watched as the small girl slept peacefully. He had dimmed the lights down so as not to wake her up. He smiled as she curled up and snuggled his kimono. She looked so cute wrapped in pink.

"Excuse me." Shunsui looked towards the fabric door to the room. He saw a student standing there. She looked nervous. "Um...I was told to give you this." She held out a piece of paper.

Shunsui got up and took the paper from her hand. "Thank you very much." He gave her a smile.

The girl left as quickly as she came.

Shunsui looked down at the sheet of paper. He didn't recognize the hand writing and there was no traces of any reiatsu on it. He frowned as he read the note.

'Please meet me in the peach tree garden. Now.'

There was no signature on the note. The last word seemed to be written with urgency. He wondered what it was about. He placed a kido on the door to alert him if anyone entered the room. He placed another one that would tell him who had entered the room. With that done, he went off to see what the note was about.

He got to the peach tree in about ten minutes. He looked around and saw no one there. He scanned the area for any reiatsu signatures. There were none.

He tensed as he heard a faint hissing sound. He scanned the area again. This time looking for anything unusual. Still nothing. He frowned as he continued to hear the hissing sound.

The hairs on the back of his neck stood up. He turn and pulled out his wakizashi. He slashed at the snake that lunged at him. and he cut it clean in half.

He looked down at the snake as it disintegrated. He caught sight of the white mask on its face. "A...Hollow?"

Shunsui sheathed his zanpakutou as he walked around the tree. He heard nothing other than the wind blowing over the roof and the rustling of the leaves on the tree. He frowned as he began walking back to the nurses office.

~nurse's office~

Nanao slowly opened her eyes and looked at the dimly lit room. It was empty except for a few chairs and desk. 'Where am I? Did I fall asleep?'

'You used up quite a bit of energy back there. And you are in the nurses office, again.' Nanao looked over to the desk that had a lamp on it. She could see her zanpakutou sitting on top of the desk. 'How do you feel?'

'Tired.' Nanao curled up in the warm silky fabric wrapped around her. She smiled as she breathed in the outdoors. 'Is this Shunsui's kimono?'

'Yeah. You kind of had a death grip on it when he brought you here.' Nanao blushed at Chibara's words.

Nanao sat up and stretched a bit. She decided to go look for someone. The office was far too quiet. She reached over to her zanpakutou.

A hand reached out of the darkness and grabbed onto her wrist. Nanao opened her mouth to scream, but a hand covered her mouth.

Nanao followed the arm up to see who it belonged to. She was met by a pair of cold dark eyes.

"Hello, Ise-san." Aizen gave the girl a cold smile. "Did you have a nice trip down memory lane?" He was pleased at the terrified face she was making.

Nanao tried to pull away from Aizen, but her small muscles weren't strong enough. She cursed herself for bein stuck in her child body.

"You will not be able to stop me. And I think causing some trouble would do very well. It will at least get rid of one, if not two, Taichous." Aizen cast a silent binding kido on the girl's body as he kept a hand over her mouth. "After all, some people have terrible reactions to having their reiatsu suppressed by someone else. And Shunsui-kun seems to already have taken a liking to you." Aizen pulled a syringe out of his pocket. The syringe was filled with a faintly glowing yellow liquid.

Nanao watched with terror as he brought the syringe close to her arm. She couldn't help but watch. She felt a burning pain as the liquid was pushed into her blood stream. She started to see the room spin and melt together. She felt like she was going to vomit or faint.

"Sweet dreams, Ise-san. You should have a lovely sleep, forever." Aizen smiled as the girl's eyes dropped down. He release the kido and she fell over. He walked out of the room as he felt her reiatsu rise and drop dramatically. He didn't have to worry about her anymore. And now he just had to watch and see what one of the oldest Taichous would do.

Nanao tried to keep her eyes open as she laid on the bed. But it wasn't working. 'Chibara...Chishitoge...Gaikotsu...help...' Nanao could feel herself slipping as the room darkened further. She couldn't move a muscle, and her body felt like t was on fire. She couldn't even gather enough energy to cry out. But tears were falling from her face.

'Nanao!' She heard all three of her zanpakutou call out to her.

'Nanao! Use my powers. You don't need to hold me to use it. Call me!' Nanao listened to the voice of her newest zanpakutou.

Nanao took a shaky breath and whispered softly. "Breath The Air Of Life, Gaikotsu." She closed her eyes as darkness took her.

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Sorry for the short chapter. Please leave a comment. I love comments.


	12. The Procedure

I do not own Bleach.

* * *

Shunsui's head snapped up. He had been keeping an eye on Nanao's reiatsu level constantly. And it was now fluctuating dangerously. He rushed back to her room as fast as he could. He walked into her room as her reiatsu vanished completely.

"No." He whispered softly as he walked quickly towards her. She was laying on her side with her hand reaching out for her zanpakutou. He put a hand on her arm, it was as cold as ice. "Nanao-chan?" He rolled her onto her back and put a hand on her small chest. He couldn't feel her heart beating.

"What was that reiatsu fluctuation?" Shunsui looked toward the doorway of the room. He easily recognized the silhouette of his fellow Taichou, Unahana Retsu. Unahana walked up to Shunsui and looked down at the child on the bed. "Oh my."

Unahana moved between Shunsui and the small child. She quickly ran a diagnostics kido. She frowned at what she found. "Do you know what happened?" She looked towards the worrying man as she continued to examine the small body beneath her hand.

Shunsui shook his head. "I left for maybe twenty minutes at most. I felt her reiatsu fluctuate and found her like this." Shunsui ran his hand over his hair. He hadn't realized he didn't have his sakkat on anymore. "Can you help her?"

"Well for one, she isn't dead." Unahana frowned as much as Shunsui was surprised. She had never found anything like this before. "Her body and reiatsu most certainly give evidence that she is, but for some reason. My kido tells me she is still alive. This is strange." Unahana quickly set up a sterilized box around them.

Both Taichous gasped as a black mist began to cover Nanao's body. They hadn't noticed it in the dim lighting of the room.

"What is this?" Shunsui reached out to it, but pulled it away quickly. It felt the same as the mist Nanao had around her during her tournament match. "Is this...her zanpakutou?"

"I'm not sure. We will have to ask her that later." Unahana ran another diagnostics kido over the girl. The mist seemed to guide her hand towards the girl's arm. She stopped when she found a small dot on the girl's flawless white skin. "It looks like she was injected with something. Did the nurse give her a vaccine?"

"No. And I put a kido up to tell me if anyone got into the room. And it never went off." Shunsui growled a bit. He knew it meant that whoever did this to Nanao, was already in the room when he left it.

Unahana easily managed to locate a pocket of what ever the vaccine she was given was. "Good thing her heart stopped beating. It allowed the vaccine to collect together." Unahana pulled the liquid out through the girl's pores. She frowned as a yellow glowing liquid balled up in her hand.

"What is that?" Shunsui didn't know much about vaccines, but he didn't think they were suppose to glow.

"It's a poison. One that makes it look like death was caused by a reaction to reiatsu suppression. Luckily we caught it early. I breaks down after two hours of the body dying." Unahana created a bowl out of the box they were in. She dropped the liquid into it. She turned back to the small child and searched for other pockets.

"How far has it spread?" Shunsui placed a hand on Nanao's small one. It was almost too cold to touch. He felt his eyes burn up with tears.

"Her entire body." Unahana found a large pocket in the girl's heart. "And it is converting her blood into the poison as well. Whoever did this has extensive knowledge of this poison." Unahana frowned thinking that someone like that existed.

"Can you change her blood back?" Shunsui watched as Unahana shook her head and continued to extract poison from Nanao's body. "Can you save her?"

"Yes, but it won't be pretty." Unahana frowned as more of the girl's blood changed into the deadly yellow poison. She hoped none of the girl's marrow had been infected.

Shunsui smiled sadly. "I'm no stranger to distasteful sights, Retsu-chan."

Unahana gave him a pitying smile as she continued to work. "Do exactly as I say, and we may be able to save her."

~a few hours later~

Lisa had a tray of food that she was carrying. Her Taichou hadn't left the small girls side in over ten hours. She was surprised he hadn't asked anyone to bring him any sake yet.

She walked into the office and to the small room that Nanao was resting in. She walked into the room and just barely managed to keep everything on the tray from falling off. "What-"

Lisa looked at the blood covered walls. Some of the blood had veins of yellow glowing in it. But it was dulling and fading quickly. About half of the room and the entire bed was covered in the blood mixture.

She looked over to see Nanao asleep on the nurses desk. She was on a pillow with her zanpakutou in her arms and wrapped in Shunsui,a pink kimono. She seems peaceful and was breathing normally.

She kept going and soon saw her Taichou and the Taichou of 4th squad smiling at her and drinking tea. They were on the side that had no traces of blood whatsoever. She walked towards them and placed the tray of food on the small table between them. She turned back and examined the bloody half of the room. "Taichou, what happened?" Lisa didn't even know if she wanted to know the answer to her question.

Shunsui shrugged as he picked up a meat bun from the tray. "We just had a bit of a nasty episode. Nothing much." Shunsui took a bite and soon had half the meat bun in his mouth. He didn't realize how hungry he was.

Unahana sipped her tea with a raised eye brow. "It could have been worse." She picked up a small cake and took a bite.

Lisa fixed her glasses as she walked over to the desk Nanao was sleeping on and leaned on it. "I see."

"Shunsui? How is-" Jushiro walked into the little room he was told his friend would be in. He stopped when he saw the state of the room. "What happened in here?!" Jushiro looked at everyone in the room. They all seemed just fine.

Shunsui smiled at his friend as he picked up his fourth meat bun. "Oh nothing bad. Just a few complications. But it seems little Nanao-chan's zanpakutou has some very interesting abilities." Shunsui looked over at the sleeping girl. He was happy she was safe and sound.

Lisa looked down at the girl as well. She wondered what her Taichou had found out about her. She smiled as Nanao seemed to be having a good dream. She had a small smile on her face and she wrapped the kimono around her more. "I think she likes your kimono."

Shunsui chuckled with his Fukutaichou. "It does seem that way doesn't it."

"Well that now makes two people that like it." Jushiro sighed as he leaned on the wall beside his friend.

Shunsui pouted at Jushiro. "I thought you liked it too." He laughed as Jushiro rolled his eyes at him. "At least she is safe now. But now we have a harder challenge." Shunsui saw the confusion on Lisa and Jushiro's faces. "We need to find out who would want to harm Nanao-chan. And why." Shunsui fixed his eyes on the small girl wrapped in his kimono. He promised himself that he wouldn't let anything harm her ever again. Even if it killed him.

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Please leave a comment.


	13. The Waking World

I do not own Bleach.

* * *

Nanao opened her eyes, but she wasn't in the dimly lit room. She was laying on a thread hammock in a broken birdcage. She smiled as she felt all of her zanpakutou snuggle closer to her. "So I am still alive?" Nanao spoke softly as if a loud noise would shatter the world around her.

"Yes. Thanks to Gaikotsu." Chibara spoke softly as he muzzled Nanao's neck. "I'm sorry, Nanao-sama. I should have been more alert to the danger. I should have torn his arm apart."

Nanao pulled her black cat into her arms. She kissed the top of his head. "It isn't your fault. Aizen is stronger than he looks. He may have just hurt you along with me." She was glad to have her zanpakutou back in her arms. "How am I still alive. If Aizen wanted me dead, I would be. And he wouldn't be connected at all."

"That is an ability of mine." Nanao sat up and looked at her red cat. "While I am in at least Shikai, you can not die." Gaikotsu climbed onto Nanao's shoulder and rubbed his head against hers. "But you will still feel pain and the effects of what ever is used on you. But you will not die. However, when you seal me, whatever is not healed or treated will stay. Which means that if you have a poison in your body that would kill you...you would die."

Nanao nodded as she listened to his explanation. "Anything else you can do?"

"I can control souls and resurrect people for a short time." Gaikotsu shrugged as he climbs down from Nanao's shoulder.

Nanao couldn't help the laugh that escaped her lips. "So I can now control the dead?" She got a nod from her red cat. "So I went from a puppeteer of toys, to a puppeteer of the dead." Nanao continued to laugh at the irony. "That may be useful when the Quincy finally decide to show up." Nanao stopped laughing. "I have the curse seal back don't I?"

"Don't know. Probably. But now you know about it. So maybe you can get rid of it this time." Chishitoge leaped onto Nanao's shoulders and wrapped himself around her neck. "And now we play with corpses. Not creepy at all."

Nanao smirked at her purple cat. She turned her eyes back to Gaikotsu. "I'm guessing I need to get Bankai from you." Gaikotsu gave her a nod. "I can release you each seep ratels into Shikai. I wonder f I still have a Bankai with just Chishitoge and Chibara." Nanao crawled over to the edge of the hammock and climbed off. "Come, Chibara...Chishitoge." She held her hands out for the cats.

Both cats changed into their sword forms when they touched her hand. She kept Chibara in her right and Chishitoge in her left. She held her blades in front of her. "Bankai!"

Nothing happened. Nanao sighed as she dropped her arms. She looked down at her zanpakutou and noticed they both had four hole on the end of their hilts. "What are these for?"

"Watch this." Nanao watched as Chishitoge glowed a bit with her dark violet reiatsu. Two prongs popped out of two of the holes. "Your turn brother." Nanao looked over to see Chibara doing the same.

She looked at the holes and the shape of the prongs. She turned one of her zanpakutou till the holes and prongs matched up. She then clicked the two zanpakutou together. She held them both with one hand. "I don't know how to use a bladed staff." Nanao sighed thinking of the skills she now needed to learn.

She dropped her zanpakutou. They landed in their cat forms at her feet. Both climbed up her legs till they were hanging off her shoulders. "Don't worry Nanao-chan. I'm sure Shunsui would love to help his cute little Nanao-chan learn the skills she needs."

Nanao smiled at her zanpakutou as she walked back to the cage and hammock. She lifted her cats onto the hammock before climbing on herself. "I guess I will see you guys later. Don't want to worry him too much."

Nanao closed her eyes and pulled herself out of her inner world.

She opened her eyes slowly. She was still in the dimly lit room. But she felt another presence in the room. Nanao quickly sat up and looked around the room. She looked back towards the desk she was sleeping on as her zanpakutou rolled towards the edge of it. She reached out to catch it, n  
But another hand reached it first. Nanao jumped back and pressed herself against the wall of the room.

"It's okay Nanao-chan. It's just me." Shunsui smiled gently at the girl. She looked terrified.

Nanao was relieved that it was Shunsui. She rushed forward and hugged him tightly. She felt tears run down her cheek as he wrapped an arm around her.

"It's okay Nanao-chan. No one is going to hurt you anymore." Shunsui was relieved she was alright. The method Unahana had used to clean the girls blood was risky and dangerous. But it had worked. "Nanao-chan, who hurt you."

Nanao took a deep breath. "Aizen Sosuke." Nanao frowned. "Aizen. Sousuke." She still heard nothing. Was something wrong with her voice? "Aizen!...AIZEN!" Nanao began to cry again. She was so close.

Shunsui felt her tears renew. He pulled away from her a bit and wiped her tears away. "Is something wrong?" He didn't know why she was so quiet. He frowned as Nanao nodded towards him. "What's wrong?"

Nanao tried to speak as clearly as she could. "I can not speak." She felt more tears as no sound came from her lips, again. Nanao could see the silhouette of someone walking into the room through her tears.

"I did not know you made small girls cry, Kyoraku-Taichou." Unahana gave Shunsui a smile as she walked towards the small girl kneeling on the edge of the desk. "How are you feeling, Ise-san?"

Shunsui frowned at the woman standing beside him. "Retsu-chan. Can you seeif there is something wrong with Nanao-chan's voice?" Shunsui was glad he had figured out how to read lips when he was small. It was fun listening into people's conversations that way.

Unahana frowned. There wasn't anything wound with it earlier. But she obliged him and checked again. She sighed as she pulled her hand away after a few minutes. "There isn't anything wrong that my kido can pick up. Why do you ask?"

"Because my cute Nanao-chan can't speak anymore." Shunsui saw Nanao's lips form a straight line. "Could there be something that is silencing her voice?"

Unahana thought of all of the possible ways something could have avoided her detection. "If there is something, then it is too powerful for me to detect. And too powerful for me to undo." She didn't like the sound of that possibility. It was scary to think that someone that powerful was out and about. "Or there is just nothing wrong. But that seems unlikely...both seem unlikely. Sorry I can not be of more help."

Nanao smiled at Unahana and bowed her head in thanks. She was grateful she had tried. She had to admit that she was glad to see the semi scary Taichou again.

"Thank you, Retsu-chan." Shunsui tipped his sakkat to his fellow Taichou. He turned back to Nanao and smiled. "Does my cute Nanao-chan need help getting back to her dorm?"

"No." Nanao picked up her zanpakutou and stood to jump off the desk. She found herself getting picked up by Shunsui. "Taichou, put me down!" She stopped and remembered that he couldn't hear her. She sighed as he picked his kimono up off the desk.

"Can you hold onto this for me?" Shunsui passed Nanao the kimono with a smile. He had seen her say 'no' but decided to ignore it. "Which way my lovely Nanao-chan?"

Nanao couldn't help but roll her eyes at Shunsui. She held onto his kimono tightly as he walk out of the nurses office.

She pointed to the left. And soon saw the world streak by and they were at the end of the hall. Nanao looked up at him and saw that he was smiling. She pointed right. And they were at the end of the hall, but they didn't need to be. Nanao shook her head. She pointed back down the hall they had come down.

"Too far?" Shunsui smiled at the young girl. He knew where the dorms where. He just wanted to spend time with her. He stepped into shunpo and stopped at the hallway halfway down the corridor. "Better?"

Nanao smiled at him and nodded. 'Lets take the long way. Since I know you know the way.'

Shunsui could see a bit of mischief in her eyes. He liked the idea of playing for a bit. "Which way now, my cute Nanao-chan?"

~half an hour later~

Shunsui and Nanao stood in front of the dorm building. Shunsui looked at Nanao, she seemed to be tired. "Which floor are you on?"

Nanao held up two fingers to say she was on the second floor.

Shunsui walked up the stairs slowly. Nanao was starting to nod off. "What is your room number?"

Nanao held up two fingers, three fingers, one finger, two fingers. She yawned and laid her head on his shoulder. She didn't realize how tired she was.

Shunsui walked down the hall till he found her room. He opened the door and walked into the clean room. He could hear Nanao's breathing even out. He walked over to her bed and gently laid her down. He knelt down beside her bed and pulled his kimono over her. She had a death grip on it. "You really do seem to like it."

Nanao peeked her eyes open a bit she wasn't completely asleep yet. She saw Shunsui kneeling beside her bed. She held his kimono out to him.

Shunsui shook his head at the little girl. "You can keep it."

Nanao sat up and shook her head. She stood on her bed and draped his kimono over his shoulders. She smiled at him. "It suits your personality." She knew he could read her lips. She had leaned that same skill from him after all.

Shunsui smiled at the little girl that was now taller than him. "Thank you, my lovely Nanao-chan."

Nanao looked away from him with her cheeks covered with blush. "I'm not your anything...yet" she made sure he couldn't read her lips.

Shunsui frowned, he didn't know what she had just said. He kissed her cheek gently. He saw her blush even more. "My Nanao-chan is far too cute."

Nanao sat down on her bed and looked up at him. She returned his childish grin with one of her own. "Thank you for your help, Kyoraku-Taichou."

"Sleep well, Nanao-chan." He kissed the top of her head before leaving her room. "Yep. Definitely going to get her into 8th. And I am not letting anyone take her away form me. My cute little nano-chan."

Nanao watched as her husband walked out of her room. She could feel tears start to run down her cheek and her throat tightened.

'Nanao-chan?' She heard Chishitoge, but ignored him. 'Nanao-chan, it's dark in here.'

Nanao turned and fell face down onto her pillow. She cried as loud as she could, but she never made a sound other than sniffling and gasping for air. She cried till she was no longer in the waking world and away in a dream of times gone by.

* * *

And apparently I can easily turn cuteness into heartbreak. Sorry if I made any of you cry. Please leave me a comment.


	14. Aftermath

I do not own Bleach.

* * *

Nanao woke up due to being over heated. But when she tried to get the covers off of her, she couldn't move them. She kept trying, but there was something stopping her.

"Nanao-chan. Let us sleep." Nanao rolled her eyes as she heard Chishitoge's voice.

She slid herself out of the blankets and looked at her three cats. They all looked at her sleepily. 'Really you guys. You can't just materialize whenever you want.' She looked at them as they all yawned and stretched. She rolled her head as she got off her bed. She walked into her bathroom to shower and change.

She was out in under an hour. Nanao looked at her clock. It was only 7:27. But she didn't know when the tournament started. She rummaged through her drawers to try and find a spare pair of glasses.

"Nanao-sama." Nanao looked up at Chibara sitting on her desk. He held a paw up and pointed down at something on the desk.

Nanao walked over and looked climbed onto her chair to get a better look at what was on her desk. Her eyes widened as she caught sight of a heart shaped locket. Nanao hesitantly reached for it.

She picked it up and examined it. 'It can't be.' Nanao had sworn she didn't have it on her earlier. She didn't have the locket that Shunsui had given her on their second anniversary. How was it here?

"Note." Nanao looked at her zanpakutou. Then the note that was under his paw.

She picked up the note that had the school's official stamp on it.

'This was found in Kizuki-sensei's class room. The reiatsu that was found on it matches yours, Ise Nanao. Please do not lose such items as they can not always be returned. And wear such things are also against the dress code. This is a warning.  
Headmaster Shikumina'

Nanao set the note down as she gently opened the locket. She smiled as the gentle melody played. She wished she could sing with it.

Gaikotsu jumped on her shoulder and rubbed against her neck. "We will get your voice back. We promise." Nanao scratched his head as she closed the locket and stopped the melody's endless cycle.

*KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK*

Nanao shoed her cats into hiding as she walked to the door. She opend it and smiled at Gin.

"Mornin' Nanao-chan. Ya ready ta go?" Gin smiled as his friend ran to her desk to grab her zanpakutou.

Nanao slid her wakizashi into her belt loop and walked beside Gin as they made their way to the Zanjutsu building.

"Ya feelin' better?" Gin frowned as he only got a nod from her. And she hesitated as well. "Is something wrong with her voice?" He got another nod. "What's wrong with it?"

Nanao thought of how she was going to tell him she couldn't speak. Nanao's head snapped up with an idea. She pointed to her eye.

"Something wrong with her eye?" Gin was wondering what she was trying to do. 'Charades maybe?' Gin saw her roll her eyes and point at one of them again. "Eye?"

Nanao nodded as he got the word right. She then crossed her fingers and made an 'X' shape with them.

"Ex?" Gin got a head shake from his friend. He thought of what an X was associated with. "No?" He got a nod from Nanao.

Nanao thought of how she could interpret or portray speaking. She took her hand made it act like a duck that was quacking.

Gin was stumped. He was smart in military aspects, not children's games. "Um...quacking?" Head shake. "Eating?" Head shake. "Speaking?" Massive nod. Gin frowned as he out all of the pieces together. "Eye no speaking. Eye no speaking?"

Nanao hung her head as it seemed her efforts were in vain.

Gin smacked a fist into his hand. "Got it. You can't talk." He pointed at Nanao. She was clapping and smiling at him. "How did that happen?"

Nanao shrugged. She honestly didn't know. But she guessed Aizen probably had something to do with it.

"Do the nurses know?" Gin couldn't understand. She had been completely fine the other day. Had something happened?

Nanao shook her head. 'This is a very one sided conversation.' Nanao heard her zanpakutou laugh their heads off.

Gin frowned as he looked at her. "How are ya goin' ta fight? If ya can't speak, ya can't call out yer zanpakutou. Unless you can wordlessly summon him." Gin could see a frown growing on Nanao's face. "And ya also can't use kido. So how are ya going ta win her match?"

Nanao smiled and held up her fists. She saw Gin smile and laugh.

"That's true. You could always just take them down with hakuda." Gin smiled as they made their way towards the waiting area to check in with the teacher. There were only 16 students left in the competition. "When did ya get so good at fighting? At the beginnin' of the year, ya was the weakest."

Nanao shrugged at his comment. She then snapped her fingers and smiled.

"It just clicked huh?" Gin could tell she wasn't comfortable talking about it. 'Maybe something happened and she needed TA get stronger, or something.'

When the supervising teacher saw the two prodigies he walked over to them quickly. "Ichimaru-san. You are in the first heat. Please make your way to the waiting area. Ise-san. You are in the second group. So please make sure to be in the waiting area before the second heat begins."

Gin and Nanao bowed to the teacher as he walked away from them.

"Wish me luck." Gin smiled as he headed off toward the waiting area. He got two thumbs up from Nanao and a large smile.

Nanao headed to the stairs so she could watch Gin's match from the balcony. She walked along the balcony as she tried to find a space where she could squeak in to watch. She felt her foot catch on something. She picked herself up from off the ground and looked around. She couldn't see what she had tripped over. But she guessed from the muffled laugh that she was hearing that someone had tripped her. She dusted her pants off and continued on.

Nanao easily found a space to stand at. And it was easy to tell why it was open. The space was right beside Lisa and near the rest of the Gotei 13 members. She smiled as she made her way to them and stand beside Lisa.

"Hello there, Ise-san." Nanao looked up in surprise. She instantly had her hands wrapped around lisa's legs as she made eye contact with Aizen. Aizen smiled at her as he cursed her luck in his head.

Lisa looked at her legs as she felt someone latch onto them. She was surprised to see Nanao there. She hadn't felt the girl's presence at all. She looked up at her fellow Fukutaichou with an almost glare. "Will you stop scaring her?! Otherwise she might decide not to be a shinigami at all."

"I was just saying hello." Aizen have the 8th squad Fukutaichou a gentle smile. 'Why must she continue to have such good luck at living?'

"You snuck up on her." Lisa spoke calmly as she picked up Nanao and sat her down on the railing. "You okay there, Nanao-chan?" Lisa smiled as the girl hugged her arms to keep herself from falling off the railing.

Nanao wasn't too scared off falling. It was only a two story drop. Nanao nodded her head at Lisa and smiled widely.

"Careful with her Lisa-chan." Lisa and Nanao looked towards Shunsui. He smiled at them both. "Wouldn't our little Nanao-chan to fall."

"Don't worry I've got her." Lisa gave her Taichou a flat look as Nanao turned around to look down at the matches.

Nanao had her eyes glued on gin as he walked into his fighting ring. She waited for his match to start. "Take your positions!" She breathed deeply as they all waited for the tournament quarterfinals to begin. "Begin!"

Gin stood perfectly still as his opponent tensed. Gin just smiled at the large man he was facing. "Aren't you going to attack? What are you waiting for?"

Gin dropped the smile from his face at his opponents words. He lowered his head a bit. Then brought it. Back up with a smile plastered on it. "Nothing." Gin took a step back with his zanpakutou in his back hand. "Shoot To Kill, Shinso." Gin let his zanpakutou out till it nearly touched the senior's neck. He held it there.

"Ichimaru Gin, victor." Gin retracted his zanpakutou and sheathed it. He looked up as he heard clapping. He saw Nanao smiling at him. He smiled back and waved.

Nanao waved back, she was glad he had gotten into the semifinals.

"That looked almost too easy for him." Nanao leaned forward to see who was speaking. It was the blond haired man, Hirako Shinji. "What do you say, Sosuke? Should we get Nanao or Gin for our squad? Cause I doubt we can get both."

"8th calls dibs on Nanao-chan!" Shunsui smiled as he looked at the Taichou beside him.

Shinji looked at him with annoyance. "You can't call dibs! That isn't fair!"

"But I just did. And you didn't say anything about me not being allowed to before I did it. So we still have dibs." Shunsui smiled as he saw Shinji's face turned bright red.

"Can you both not act like children? There is a child present. And you are both in public." Lisa held back a sigh as she addressed the two Taichous. She noticed Nanao laughing silently at the two. "See what you have done?"

Shunsui turned and saw Nanao laughing silently. He smiled at her as he wondered what her laugh sounded like. "I think we should let Nanao-chan head off to her match."

Nanao nodded as she jumped down from the railing. She flipped herself over to her feet as she neared the ground. She landed lightly and looked up with a smile. She saw all of the Taichous and Fukutaichous staring at her in amazement. She waved before heading to the check in area.

She saw Gin walking towards the door and ran up to him. She tapped him on the shoulder.

Gin turned around and was surprised to find Nanao behind him. How had she done that? Gin smiled at her. "Good luck out there."

Nanao nodded as he ran off to get to a good spot on the balcony. Nanao turned back and waited for her name to be called.

"Arena two is Ise vs Fujiko..." Nanao walked out towards her arena as the teacher continued to speak. She was in the same one that gin had been in. She looked up and saw Gin sitting beside Aizen. She smiled and waved at him.

"And so I finally get to meet one of the famous prodigies." Nanao turned and looked towards her oppenent. "Fujiko Akihiko, strongest female in the senior class." Akihiko smiled at the girl she was facing against. She had beaten the strongest and smarted males in her class. She wanted to see how strong she was.

Nanao gave her a smile and a bow.

"You not going to introduce yourself? Or do you just assume everyone already knows who you are? Brat." Akihiko frowned at the girl. She had hoped the girl would have showed her senior some respect by introducing herself at least.

"Take your positions!" Nanao slowly drew her zanpakutou. She had a feeling she would need it. "Begin!"

Nanao brought her wakizashi up and quickly caught seniors blade with her own. Nanao's face became blank as she concentrated. She held her ground she the pressure from the attack increased.

*CRACK*

Nanao looked down and saw the ground begin to crack. Nano added her other hand to her sword and managed to easily push the senior off of her.

'You should keep two hands on at all times. Otherwise they might suspect something.' Nanao kept her hands together as Chibara advised. Although she was pretty sure she had already given herself away. 'Move me to your none dominant hand. Then be unable to block with out the other.'

'But a worrier never removes his hand from his blade. Only a rookie...' Nanao smiled. She was a freshman, that was equal to a rookie. Nanao switched her hands. She took her right hand off and wiped it on her uniform as if it was sweaty.

"Don't take your hand off of your blade." Nanao turned back quickly as the senior took advantage of the situation. Akihiko added more power to her attack. She could knock this brat off of her high horse and out of the tournament.

Nanao made it seem like her left hand was really weak. She quickly switched back to her right and prepared to receive another attack.

"So is that it. You can't only block. And only with both of your hands. Pathetic." Akihiko ran at Nanao. She didn't notice the concentration on the girl's face.

Nanao held up her right and left hand together. A glowing red ball shot out of her hand. She had cast a silent Shakkaho.

The red ball hit Akihiko square in the chest. Knocking her over and the wind out of her. She struggled to get up. And she found a blade at her neck when she finally did.

"Ise Nanao, victor." Nanao sighed as she sheathed her sword. She heard clapping above her. She looks up and saw Gin smiling at her. She also saw all of the Taichous looking at her impressed. She saw Lisa and Shunsui beaming at her. She smiled and waved at them before she turned and headed for the waiting area doors.

She walked out of the doors and through the dense crowd. She got out of the crowd and ended up at the front door to the Zanjutsu building. She sighed and decided to wait for Gin outside.

It was about five minutes till she saw the silver hair of her friend in the crowd. He was soon walking towards her with a smile. "Good job Nanao-chan. Were both in the semifinals. And this are this afternoon."

Nanao was surprised the semifinals were so soon.

"And that silent cast." Gin couldn't contain himself. He had never known anyone to be able to do that. "That was brilliant."

"Indeed it was." Nanao quickly hid behind Gin as Aizen walked up to the two.

"Sosuke." Nanao looked past Aizen to see Shinji walking towards them. He sounded annoyed. "Quit scaring her. Otherwise we'll never get her to come to 5th. Or even anywhere near us." Shinji didn't know why his Fukutaichou was always scaring the girl. But then again, Sosuke was a scaring guy.

"It's okay Shinji." Shunsui clamped a hand on his fellow Taichou's shoulder. "I will take good care of her in 8th."

Lisa walked her Taichou with the book she had with her. "Behave. Both of you." She glared at the two before turning and smiling at Nanao. "Congratulations on making it to the semifinals you two."

"Thank you, Yadomaru-Fukutaichou." Nanao and Gin both smiled at her.

"There you guys are!" The group all looked over as a Taichou with log white hair walked over to them. "We already have the picnic all set up. Hello there Ichimaru-kun and Nanao-chan. Would you like to join us for a picnic?" Jushiro smiled at the two children. Their eyes seemed to widen at his offer.

"Sure." Gin was excited. He could get closer to the man he was after, Aizen Sosuke.

Nanao nodded her head. 'I can spend time with Shunsui and Lisa.'

"Up you go." Shunsui picked up both of the kids and set one on each of his shoulders. "Hold on." He kept a hand on their feet to make sure they wouldn't fall back wards.

Nanao smiled as she watched the world from up high. She was enjoying herself very much. 'I wonder if this is how Yachiru-chan feels when she is riding on Zaraki-Taichou's back?'

An image went through her mind of Shunsui being dressed like the Taichou of 11th squad. She shook her head to clear the image from her head. She didn't want to see him with an eye patch again. She didn't want to see him hurt.

Nanao leaned into Shunsui's sakkat as he continued to walk. 'I will protect you. I promise.'

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Please leave a comment or a question. I love hearing back from my readers.


	15. Running

I do not own Bleach.

* * *

Nanao could see that most of the other Taichous and Fukutaichous were already there. They had set up the picnic on the hill near the peach tree garden on the school grounds. It was a beautiful spot. Nanao caught sight of a small blond girl looking at Gin and herself.

"Who're the midgets?" Hiyori pointed to the two kids on Kyoraku's shoulders. She felt someone punch her head. She grabbed it and looked to see who it was. "What was that for idiot?!" She glared at Shinji with a menacing look.

"For being an annoying brat." Shinji moved away from the small demon before he got punched or kicked again.

Shunsui sat down and let the two kids down. Gin walked over and sat beside Aizen and Shinji. Nanao sat down in between Shunsui and Lisa.

"Nanao-san?" Nanao looked over to see Shiba Kaien smiling at her. "Would you like some dango?"

Nanao smiled and nodded her head. She accepts the stick and napkin from him. She smiled at the three balls she had. She took a fairly large bite of the first one and smiled as she chewed.

"Does Nanao-chan like dango?" Nanao looked up at Shunsui. He was smiling at her and she blushed a bit when she met his eyes. She looked away and nodded her head. She took another bite and slid the ball she was eating off the stick. She pointed the stick at Shunsui. Offering him one of her dango balls. "Why thank you my sweet Nanao-chan." Shunsui pulled a ball off of the stick and ate half of it.

Nanao took another bite of her dango. She couldn't help but remember all of the times they are dango together. Dates while she was pregnant. While she was his Fukutaichou at 8th. Dates while they were married. Family outings. She couldn't help the sadness that washed over her.

Lisa saw the change in Nanao's attitude. "Nanao-chan? Are you alright?"

Nanao pushed the thoughts out of her head and put a smile on her face. She nodded at Lisa and finished off the dango in her hand. She took a bite out of the last ball on her stick.

Shunsui noticed Lisa was still worrying about the small girl. He leaned forward and put his head in front of her face. "Is something wrong with my Nanao-chan?"

Nanao was stopped in mid bite. Her face was inches away from Shunsui's. She was drawing a blank.

Shunsui smiled gently, an idea had popped into his head. He leaned forward and took a small bite out of the other side of the dango she was nibbling.

Nanao was completely frozen. She couldn't move. If she did, she would want to run away.

Lisa wrapped her arms around Nanao and quickly pulled her away from her womanizing Taichou. "That is too far! Be more appropriate Taichou! She is a child!" Lisa couldn't believe he had actually done that. She knew he was outrageously flirtatious, but this was too far.

Shunsui pouted at his Fukutaichou. "But I wanted more dango." He laid down on the blanket and looked up at Lisa.

"Then ask!" Lisa could feel Nanao trying to stand up. "You okay Nanao-chan?"

Nanao didn't look at them. She just ran.

"Nanao-chan!" Shunsui was up in an instant and running after her. He stepped into shunpo and landed in front of her. He saw her shunpo to try and get around him. He tried to block her way. But stopped as she moved past him. And he was not fast enough to stop her. "Nanao-chan." He whispered to himself as he watched her go.

The picnic that has once been noisy and loud, was now completely silent. All of them had seen what had just happened between the small girl and the Taichou. None of them could believe what they saw.

A woman with purple hair was the only one to move from her spot. She landed beside Shunsui softly. "Why did you let her go?"

"I didn't. Nanao-chan was just faster than me." Shunsui was a bit surprised by her speed. But he was mostly hurt that she had run away from him. He didn't mean to make her run.

Yorichi looked towards the direction the girl had run off. She had a large grin on her face. "Wonder how powerful little Nanao-chan is. If she can outrun you, then she has to be pretty powerful already."

Shunsui tipped his sakkat down as he turned and walked back to his spot he was sitting at. "I would like to that as well."

* * *

Let me know what you think.


	16. Decisions

I do not own Bleach.

* * *

Nanao crawled under her blankets as so as she got to her room and locked e door. She had her face in her pillow and her knees pulled up to her chest. She didn't want to go back out there. She couldn't face them again.

"Nanao-chan?" Nanao ignored her cat's plea. "Please come out Nanao-chan." Chishitoge climbed on top of the mound in the bed at was Nanao. "Everything will be alright. Soon you will be in his squad and everything will be just fine. You'll see." Chishitoge wasn't sure if he was helping. But he was doing what he could.

"Chishitoge is right Nanao. Everything will be just fine." Gaikotsu crawled under he blanket and rubbed against Nanao's legs. "Please come out."

Nanao pushed the blanket off of her head and looked at her cats. They all looked at her with worry. 'I'm sorry you guys. I just don't know if I can go on like this. I'm so close to him, but he is so far away from me. It hurts.' Nanao pressed her face against her pillow as she began to cry again.

"Cheer up Nanao. Once we get rid of Aizen and save Lisa, everything will be even better than before." Chishitoge jumped up onto Nanao's knees and smiled at her gently. "Come on. You need to get ready. Your match is in half an hour."

Nanao nods as she sets her pillow down. She went into her bathroom and freshened up. She came out with her hair brushed and pinned back with two Sakura shaped clips on one side.

"I didn't know you had those." Chishitoge smiled as he saw how cute Nanao looked with them on.

'They work like my glasses. I had a lot of back up measures in case my glasses broke.' Nanao picked up her wakizashi and placed it in her belt. 'Stay hidden till I get back.' She waved as she left her room and ran to the Zanjutsu building.

She got to the waiting area and easily found Gin. He was looking at the pairing sheet. She tapped him on the shoulder and smiled when he turned around.

"Nanao-chan! Are you okay? Everyone was worried about you." Gin was glad to see that Nanao had decided to continue. He was worried she was too upset.

Nanao looked down at her feet. She looked back at him brought her thumb and pointer finger together. Then she covered her face with her hands.

"What upset you?" Gin was glad he was getting better at understanding her. They had decided to play charades at the picnic.

Nanao gave him a look that to her was asking if her really needed to ask that question.

Gin laughed at the face she was giving him. "True. It was Kyoraku-Taichou right?" He got a nod from the girl. "Did you really need to move that fast thought? He tried to stop you and apologizes, but you out ran him."

Nanao scratched the side of her cheek as she tried to think of what to say to that. She had forgotten she was in front of the entire Gotei 13 top ranking officers. She had really slipped up. She shrugged innocently.

"You were that upset huh?" Gin thought it was curious how it took her so long to answer. Was she lying? Or was she hiding something? "Well tomorrow is the last day of the tournament. The finals and then the championship match. We aren't against each other yet."

Nanao looked up at the sheet of pairings. Gin was right. They probably wouldn't get paired up until the championship match. Unless one of them lost before that.

"Students please head to your designated fighting rings." Nanao and Gin high-fives before they each separated and headed to the arena they were assigned to.

Nanao stood and waited patiently for her opponent to arrive. She caught sight of Shunsui and Lisa waving at her. She gave them a small wave before bringing her attention back to her opponent that was walking towards her.

Shunsui smiled as Nanao waved to them. He was worried she wouldn't do anything.

"Looks like you haven't lost her yet. Who knows. Maybe she won't go to either of our squads. Maybe she'll end up with Kaien and Jushiro." Shinji bumped Shunsui with his shoulder. The pink clad man had been moping since Nanao ran off during the picnic.

"I'm fine with just one prodigy. Thank you very much." Jushiro smiled at the two Taichous beside him. "Besides, no matter which squad Nanao-chan goes to, I'm sure Shunsui will be spending most of his time there."

"She'll be in 8th. I have a feeling that is where she wants to be." Shunsui smiled as the supervising teacher began the matches.

Lisa looked at her Taichou suspiciously. "Please do not interfere with her decision. She should make the choice of where she goes." Lisa smiled as Nanao dodges a charge from her opponent. Lisa found it curious how the girl facing Nanao didn't step out of the ring. Lisa adjusted her glasses and caught sight of something. She smiled widely.

"What did you find, Lisa-chan?" Shunsui had also found it curious that Nanao seemed to be helping her opponent rather than fighting her. It looked more like a sparring match rather than a tournament match.

Lisa shrunk her smile down as she looked at her Taichou. "Just another good thing about our little Nanao-chan." Lisa smiled as she continued to watch the little girl.

"Well this is interesting. I'm pretty sure little Nanao-chan has cast Danku at least three times already." Shinji smiled as the clumsy girl that was against Nanao avoided being disqualified once again. "This is very interesting. Wonder how long she can keep going."

"Probabaly a while." Shunsui and Shinji jumped away from the silver haired boy. Neither had noticed him, again. "Sorry about that. Ya just seemed so calm. I was ya both would have noticed I was here." Gin smiled at the two Taichous.

"You sure you just want Nanao?" Shinji was thinking he may not want the small creepy boy. He already had Aizen to creep him out.

"You can have Gin-chan. He seems quite find of your Fukutaichou."Shunsui glanced towards Aizen as Gin went over and greeted him

"Ise Nanao, victor." Everyone looked down toward at he ring that Nanao had been in. They saw her helping up her opponent with a smile on her face.

"Attention all students. The finals matches will be tomorrow in the main arena. First match up will be Ise Nanao vs. Nakamo Kurio at 9 am. Second match will be Sanatou Riku vs. Ichimaru Gin at 11 am. The championship match will be held at 2 pm tomorrow in the main arena as well." The supervising teacher announced over the PA system. They had just gotten it set up the previous morning.

Nanao smiled as she made her way to the entrance of the Zanjutsu building. It was easier to meet up with people outside rather than inside. 'Only two more matches to go. Hopefully no more complications will come up.'

'As long as Aizen doesn't try to kill you again.' Nanao agreed with Chibara. Aizen was already becoming a handful. But she had no proof he was the one doing everything. And without proof, no one would believe her. 'Shunsui might still believe you. And he has a lot of sway with the Soutaichou and Central 46.'

'True but even with him. We need proof. Otherwise it is just speculation.' Nanao sat down on the steps to wait for Gin. 'I will find proof. And then I will Aizen down. And if it comes down to where I have to be labels a murderer to stop him, I will.'

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dun...Dun...DUN! Going full out with the tournaments in the next chapter. So stay tuned. And give feedback. Thank you!


	17. Choices

I do not own Bleach.

* * *

Nanao sat quietly as she waited for her friend to get out of the Zanjutsu building. She breathed in the cool breeze as it blew past her. She felt a pair of hands cover her eyes. "Guess who?"

Nanao wrote Gin's name on the back of his hand. She smiled when he removed his hands from her eyes.

"Yep. Congratulations on the win. And it looks like we won't be facing each other till the championship match." Gin smiled at his friend. He really wasn't expecting to make any friends while at the academy. But he was glad have had made one. "Let's go get dinner. I'm starved."

Both turned to go to the dinner hall. But they were soon off of their feet and being hugged by a smiling Fukutaichou. "You two did brilliantly!" Lisa shouted as she spun around with the two prodigies.

"Lisa-san. Please be more gentle with them." Jushiro smiled as he watched his friend's Fukutaichou congratulate the two.

Lisa pouted at the white haired Taichou. "I am being gentle."

"Her kinda actin' like a little child." Gin gave Lisa a smile. He was quite amused by her and her Taichou's attitudes.

"I agree with Gin." Aizen stepped up beside the 13th squad Taichou. He gave Nanao a gentle smile.

Nanao returned his smile with a flat stare.

"Gods job there Sosuke." Shinji put a hand on his Fukutaichou's shoulder. "You managed not to scare Nanao-chan."

"Lisa-chan. I think you could put them down now." Shunsui smiled at his Fukutaichou and the two children.

"It's alright, Kyoraku-Taichou. I don't mind being held by a beautiful woman." Gin's smile widened. He was having a lot of fun with them.

Nanao looked at Gin with a shocked look. It soon turned into a glare.

Shunsui let out a laugh. "Cheeky little guy aren't you?"

"Ise Nanao and Ichimaru Gin." Everyone quieted down and looked towards the Soutaichou. "Come with me."

Nanao and Gin looked at each other before hopping out of Lisa's arms. They both waved as they ran after the Soutaichou.

Gin leaned over to Nanao. "Do you know what this is about?"

Nanao shot him an annoyed look.

Gin couldn't help but laugh. "Ya look cute when yer annoyed."

They both stayed silent as hey followed the Soutaichou through the halls of the school. They soon found the self walking into the Headmaster's office.

The Headmaster looked up from his paperwork as one of his oldest friends ushered two small children into his office. He smiled at the two prodigies. "How are you both enjoying the tournament?"

"A bit boring. No one strong enough of a challenge." Gin smiled at the two old men. They weren't too bad.

Nanao shrugged with a smile.

"A verbal response please Ise-san." The Headmaster found it curious that the girl hadn't said a word. Or even made a sound.

"Nanao-chan can't talk. Somthin's wrong with her voice." Gin looked towards Nanao. She seemed embarrassed and why all of a sudden. "Nurses don't know what's wrong either."

Yamamoto nodded at the information. "I will tell Unahana to come by and take a look." His eyes were drawn to the small girl. She seemed to be asking for something.

The Headmaster also noticed Nanao's actions. "There is a chalkboard behind you."

Nanao looked and smiled as she saw the chalkboard. She walked over and wrote on it. 'Unahana-Taichou already looked at it. She found nothing wrong. But she did say that it might be something too powerful for her kido to detect.'

Yamamoto frowned at the words Nanao wrote down. "When did she take a look at you?"

Nanao wrote quickly. 'Yesterday. Sometime after I fainted at my match. Thank you for helping me.' Nanao smiled at him after she finished writing.

Yamamoto cracked a small smile for a brief second. "Your welcome. You need to get better control over your reiatsu. Then you won't need to suppress it with glasses or small little clips."

Nanao blushed as he pointed out the function of her clips.

Gin coughed to get the Headmaster's attention. "So what do ya want from us?" He didn't like beating around the bush.

The Headmaster smiled at the little boy. "How do you both feel about graduating early? Say...after the tournament?" He watched as both of their faces grew wide with a smile. "I'll take your reaction as a 'yes'."

Yamamoto was glad the two were excited. It was rare to get such young blood into the Gotei 13. He knew they would rise in the ranks quickly. "Do either of you have a preference of which squad you would like to be a part of?" He wanted to give them a choice before the Taichous started fighting over them.

Gin smiled at the Soutaichou. "I would like ta go ta 5th squad." Gin was glad he could chose. He wanted to keep an eye on his target.

Nanao turned to the board and wrote down an '8' as bueatiful lay as she could. She even added flowers to it.

'calm down Nanao-chan.' Nanao could picture Chishitoge sweat dropping at her enthusiasm.

Yamamoto couldn't help the chuckle that went through his body. The girl would fit just fine in 8th squad. "Are you both sure about your choices?" Phew got a nod from both of them. "Very well. I will announce your choices to the Taichous after the championship match tomorrow. You are both dismissed."

Nanao and Gin bowed before they walked out of the office. They were both running through the halls happily to the dinner hall. Today was an almost perfect day. And tomorrow was set to be even better.

* * *

The real fun starts soon. Thank you for reading this far. Please leave a comment and tell me what you think of the story so far.


	18. Tournament Results

I do not own Bleach.

* * *

Nanao woke up fully rested the next day. She saw all three of her cats nestled on top of her extra pillow at the end of her bed. She smiled as she crawled towards them and gently woke them up.

Chishitoge swatted at her hand and rolled onto his stomach. "Nanao-chan...let me sleep."

'Its time to get up. Today is the last day of the tournament! I am not losing today. But I think I will stay off of the playground.' Nanao really didn't want a repeat of what happened last time she used her playground. She really didn't need to be labeled as too dangerous.

"Good luck, Nanao." Gaikotsu nudged his brothers to get off of him. He had somehow ended up at the bottom of a cat pile up.

*KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK*

'Back to the Graveyard.' Nanao smiled as she pulled of her her cats back into her inner world. It was easy when they were tired. She skipped over to her door with a smile on her face.

She opened the door to find Gin smiling at her. "Ready to...go? Did ya just wake up? Yer hair is a mess, Nanao-chan." Gin chuckled at the morning hair Nanao had.

Nanao ran to her bathroom and gasped when she saw the state of her hair. It was worse than when Shunsui refused to brush his hair for weeks while working. And his hair tangled naturally. She quickly grabbed a brush and got her hair under control. She clipped it back with her two barrettes before nodding with approval.

She walked out of her bath room to see Gin still standing in her doorway. Gin was still smirking at the image of Nanao's morning hair. He didn't think he would ever see it again. "Ya ready?"

Nanao nodded her head as she picked Chibara up from her desk chair and walked to the door. She closed it behind them as they began their final trip to the Zanjutsu building.

They both made their way to the main arena in silence. They were both told to stay in the waiting area during the matches. There were cushions to sit on and watch the matches.

Nanao sat next to Gin as they waited for the end of the tournament to begin. They spotted the Taichous and Fukutaichous sitting in the spectator's box to watch.

Nanao and Gin turned their attention to the teacher that was making his way to the centre of the floor. "Attention! Thank you for all of the participants that have taken part thus far! Thank you Taichous and Fukutaichous for attending this years tournament! Now for the first final match. Ise Nanao vs. Nakamo Kurio! The requirement for a win is to draw blood or immobilize your opponent! Zanpakutou release is not permitted!"

"Good luck Nanao-chan." Gin smiled as his friend walked out onto the fight mat. He watched as her opponent walked out as well. He was fairly tall and had short brown hair. He looked like a pretty laid back guy.

Nanao stood as tall as she could while her opponent joined her on the mat. He smiled at her lazily. "So it's the cute one that I am against. Too bad. I was hoping not to have to face such a cute little hime-chan." Kurio smiled more as he saw her blush.

Nanao looked away from Kurio. He reminded her of Shunsui terribly. 'Hopefully he doesn't fight like him. Then that might be a problem.'

'But you can easily take down Shunsui. If I remember correctly, everytime you two fought, you always ended up on top.' Chishitoge giggled as Nanao's face reddened even more.

'I always ended up on top because he never wanted to hurt me.' Nanao frowned more as her zanpakutou snickered.

"Take your positions!" Nanao snapped out of her self conversation. She drew her wakizashi and faced her opponent. Kurio lazily drew his katana. "Begin!"

Nanao easily blocked Kurio's first attack. He had run at her head on. She deflected and landed a hit in his stomach with the end of her sword. She only felt a connection to his stomach for a second.

Kurio landed lightly on his feet. He had a hand on his stomach. "Little hime-chan is pretty strong, ne?" He shrunk back a bit at the cold glare he got from the small girl.

"Please do not call me 'hime-chan'." Nanao was quite surprised to have her voice back, but continued on without showing it. "I already have a nickname, and I don't quite care for that one either. But I doubt he will ever stop using it." Nanao kept her voice flat and her eyes on Kurio. But she could feel eyes burning into the back of her skull. And she could hear a few snickers, gasps and squeals.

"Oh? And who would call you that? And what name is better than hime-chan?" Kurio began walking along the edge of the ring. He wanted to draw out the fight as long as possible. That was what he excelled at, stamina and patience.

Nanao smirked as she kept herself opposite to him. "A slightly bothersome person. But I wouldn't have him any other way." Nanao now saw a confused and shocked looks on all of the shinigami's faces. They all seemed to not know who she was talking about and that she could talk at all. She moved her eyes back to her opponent. "And anything is better than hime-chan."

Nanao lunged at him. She ducked under his sword and attempted to swipe his feet out from under him.

Kurio jumped before Nanao's leg met his. He landed on his hand and pushed himself into the air. He twisted and brought his sword down on Nanao.

Nanao brought her sword up just in time to block Kurio's sword. She gritted her teeth against the impact. She slanted her sword to take the weight off of her. She quickly rolled away and brought her hand up. 'Shakkaho!'

Kurio dodged out of the way from the kido. He took advantage of the dust cloud and ran at Nanao. He got behind her and held his sword up to her throat. "It's over."

"No. That doesn't qualify for a win." The dust cloud settled more. Nanao smiled when Kurio caught sight of why the teacher hadn't called his win yet. Nanao's sword was holding back his own. "Cover is a great asset, for both parties." Nanao spun away from his blade and brought her hand back up. 'Shakk-' she pulled her hand back when Kurio swung his blade at it.

Kurio pressed her towards he edge of the ring. 'This is drawn out enough.' He swung at her and continued to push her back.

'He's trying to get you disqualified.' Nanao rolled her eyes at Chishitoge's comment.

'What he doesn't seem to realize, is that he is bringing us both to the edge.' Nanao continued to step back and cringe at his attacks. They were no where near as powerful as Shunsui's. And Shunsui went at her with intent to kill. Kurio wasn't like that at all.

Kurio had a smile on his face as he got Nanao to the edge of the ring. 'Your done!' He swung at her one last time. But she suddenly wasn't there. 'What?!'

Nanao stood behind her stunned opponent. He didn't seem to notice where she had gone. The arena was silent. "Now it is done."

"Hime-" Kurio turned and was met by a pair of feet hitting his face. He felt himself fly through the air and slid across the ground. He sat up and looked at the ring. He had gone at least fifty feet.

The arena was still silent.

*clap...clap...clap...clap*

Nanao looked over towards the Gotei 13 members. She was slightly surprised to see Aizen clapping for her. He was soon joined by the rest of the shinigami and everyone else in the arena.

The teacher stepped up beside Nanao in the middle of the ring. "The victor of the first final match, Ise Nanao!"

Nanao smiled and bowed at the members of the Gotei 13. Then the rest of the school in a clockwise pattern. She then walked toward Gin and sat down on the cushion next to him. She took a deep breath and let it out before looking towards her friend.

"When did ya get yer voice back?"gin could have sworn she hadn't been able to talk earlier. But then again, they hadn't really talked that morning.

"Don't know." Nanao shrugged and turned her eyes towards the shinigami. She had a feeling she was being watched. She found five or six pairs of eyes watching her.

The first pair were a turquoise pair framed by black bangs, the Fukutaichou of 8th squad. Nanao gave her smiled before moving onto the next pair. The next were a pair of soft brown eyes she knew all too well, the Taichou of 8th squad. She tried hard to skip over the cold brown eyes that were next, but they still sent a chill through her body. The next pair of brown eyes seemed worried. She guessed the Taichou of 5th squad had seen her shiver. The pair of green eyes at the end seems to hold the same look.

"Looks like we've got time till my match. Want ta go say hello?" Gin smiled at Nanao as he checked the clock on the wall. Nanao's match had only taken and hour at most. He was surprised it had even gone on for that long.

"I don't think that would be appropriate. None of the other students can, so we should not." Nanao sat up straight and didn't look at Gin as she responded.

"Aww. The no fun Nanao-chan is back. All yer missin' are yer glasses." Gin leaned back onto his hands. He was going to be very bored for the next hour.

An hour passed by surprisingly quickly. And the teacher was back in the middle of the ring. "The second final match! Sanatou Riku vs. Ichimaru Gin! Same rules as the previous match apply! Victory by drawing blood or immobilization of opponent! Zanpakutou release is not permitted!"

"Good luck, Gin-kun." Nanao smiled as her friend walked out to the ring.

"Don't need it." Gin whispered to himself as he turned to face his opponent. He didn't have a smile on his face. He had a special plan for this match.

"So your friends with that creepy girl? Makes sense. You're just as creepy." Riku frowned at his opponent. Gin had beaten Riku's girlfriend by releasing his zanpakutou. Imaru, the one that stole the creepy girl's zanpakutou, was also his best friend. He had promised that he would win the tournament in their place.

"Take your positions!" The teacher took a step back. He could feel the tension in the air.

"Ya. We're friends. And I don't like ya callin' Nanao-chan creepy." Gin put a smile on his face. It wasn't his usual smile. It was meant to scare people.

"Begin!" The teacher quickly backed away. He could sense a subtle killing aura coming from the small silver haired boy.

Gin stood still as he looked at his opponent.

Riku didn't understand what was happening. He didn't feel like he was being crushed by a powerful reiatsu. But he felt like he couldn't breath. He couldn't move a muscle under the boy's gaze. He couldn't even tell if his eyes were even open.

The sound of a pin dropping could have been heard. No one spoke or made a sound. Many onlookers even found their own breathing to be too loud. Everyone just held their breath as the two students watched each other.

"Ne? What's wrong, Sanatou-senpai?" Gin slowly began walking towards the senior. "Did ya forget how ta move?"

Riku didn't know what had come over him. He continued to watch as the small boy continued to walk towards him. He felt his knees buckle and hit the ground. The grip he had on his katana was far too tight. But he wasn't paying attention. His mind was thinking of ways the small boy walking towards him could torture him to death. Or worse, leave him to deal with the wounds and torture.

Gin walked beside the senior's sword. It was a useless toy in his hands. "What are ya thinkin' about?" The smile on Gin's face dropped for a second. "It must not be something pleasant." The smile returned, and this time he showed a bit of teeth. "Let me take your mind off of it."

Riku watched as the boy lifted his sword up to his face. He shut his eyes tightly. He didn't want to watch as the blade cut into his skin. He suddenly felt a hand on his head. He peaked out and saw the silver haired boy smiling in his face. "Just kidding." Riku let out a long winded breath he didn't know he was holding. He felt the need for more air, but he instead found the world around him spinning as it faded to black.

Gin frowned as the senior fell over. He turned to the teacher while pointing at his opponent. "He fainted. Does that count as immobilizing?" Gin smiled as the teacher continued to stare in disbelief at what he had just witnessed

The teacher quickly composed himself and walked onto the fighting mat. He checked all of Sanatou's vitals and responses. The senior was out cold. He quickly stood in the centre of the ring. "Sanatou Riku is unable to continue competing! The victory goes to Ichimaru Gin! The championship match will be Ise Nanao vs. Ichimaru Gin! It will be here at 2 o'clock! You are dismissed for lunch!"

Nanao ran over to Gin and hugged him enthusiastically. She quickly let go of him and blushed at her behaviour. 'Why am I acting like a child?'

'Cause you are one Nanao-chan. Oh look. Here comes Mr. Tall-Dark-and-Handsome.' Chishitoge laughed as Nanao rolled her eyes at him. He found it amusing to tease her.

"Congratulations." Shunsui tipped his hat to the two students. "Looks like the championship match is going to be a spectacular event. Just don't hurt each other too much."

"We will." Nanao smiled happily at him. She was very excited to be joining his squad. She just wished she could hold herself back from telling him.

"It's nice to hear your voice again, Ise-san." Aizen smiled at her. His smile turned genuine when he saw the fear in her eyes.

Shinji noticed the fear flash through the little girl's eyes. 'What is she afraid of? Could she feel the same unease about Sosuke as I do?' Shinji smiled thinking of ways to try and get her to talk with him about his odd Fukutaichou. Or get her to join his squad at all.

"When did my lovely Nanao-chan get her beautiful voice back?" Shunsui knelt down so he was at eye level with the small girl. He thought she looked incredibly cute without glasses.

Lisa dropped her large book on her Taichou's head. "Stop that."

"Hey! Stop hogging the kiddies!" Everyone turned to look at the woman walking towards them. Her purple hair was tied back and her yellow eyes almost glowed. "Let others hang out with them a bit." Yorichi smiled at the two kids. One seemed very happy to see her. The other seemed a bit curious about her.

"You're Shihoin Yorichi-sama, 2nd squad Taichou." Nanao smiled at her mentor fondly.

Yorichi was surprised the freshman knew exactly who she was. She smiled at the little girl. "You forgot Commander-in-Chief of the Onmitsukido. And Flash Goddess!" Yorichi used her shunpo to get behind the two prodigies.

Nanao smiled as her former mentor pulled her into a hug. 'She only trained you for what...20 days?' Nanao rolled her eyes at her zanpakutou. 'Just saying. You didn't get to know her that well.'

Nanao was about to reply to her zanpakutou, but someone touched a sensitive nerve. "Hahahaha-" Nanao covered her mouth quickly. But the damage had been done.

"Nanao-chan has a cute laugh. Don't you think so, Kyoraku-kun?" Yorichi held the small girl that was covering her mouth. Yorichi could see blush spreading across her cheeks. "She's also cute when she is blushing." Yorichi hugged the small girl tightly.

"Yorichi-chan. If you keep hugging Nanao-chan like that, she may not be able to compete in her next match." Shunsui could see Nanao struggling to get out of the woman's grasp. But not too hard. She seemed to be enjoying being close. Almost as if she missed her. 'But Nanao-chan has never met Yorichi. I wonder why she is acting like that?' He tipped his hat as he smiled at the pair.

Yorichi frowned at the pink clad man. "I'm surprised you're so worried. There's a chance she could end up in my squad. Her zanpakutou is certainly suited to it. As long as she doesn't go too overboard." Yorichi set the little girl down. She didn't know why she felt a slight attachment to the small child.

'Cat lady doesn't realize we are cats as well.' Nanao smiled at Chishitoge's comment. 'Shall we come out and greet her?'

'NO! I'm suppose to have just gotten my zanpakutou. Materializing shouldn't be possible for me!' Nanao was shocked her zanpakutou had even suggested that.

Shunsui looked curiously at the little girl. She seemed to have suddenly stopped. 'I wonder what her zanpakutou told her?'

'Why do you think it was her zanpakutou?' Shunsui smiled at Katen Kyokotsu's comment. 'Someone else could have said something or she may have remembered something.'

'It looks more like it was her zanpakutou.' Shunsui walked towards Nanao. He reached out to comfort her, but someone else beat her.

"Are you alright, Ise-san?" Aizen knelt down beside the small girl. He moved his hand to place it on her shoulder, but she moved away from him. He saw a look of surprise on her face, but her eyes were glaring at him. "Sorry. I didn't mean to scare you."

Nanao tried not to let her anger show on her face.

Shinji rolled his eyes and threw his arms up. "I give up. I don't think it is possible for Aizen to not scare her. Maybe she's just not meant to be in my squad. I'm not meant to have such a cute girl in my squad-"

Hiyori stood on Shinji's back. "Shut up, baka." She walked off of Shinji after staying on top of him for as long as possible. "Besides. I'm pretty sure she has already chosen a squad to join."

"We have." Gin smiled at the short Fukutaichou of 12th squad. "But we ain't gonna tell ya. The Soutaichou is gonna announce that after the tournament when we graduate."

"Oh? You're graduating after the tournament. Fascinating." Aizen stood and smiled at the two small students.

"Hey!" Everyone looked towards the Taichou of 9th squad. "You guys going to lunch or not!" Kensei didn't want to wait. But he waited to see their response.

"Coming!" Shunsui waved back at him. "Let's go! You both should recover from your matches."

Nanao followed after Shunsui with a smile. She reached up and grabbed his hand before she even realized what she had done.

Shunsui looked down at the little hand that had grabbed his own. He was surprised to see Nanao holding his hand. His face quickly turned into a smile when she smiled back at him. "Let's go, Nanao-chan."

~2 hours later~

Nanao and Gin stood in the centre of the fighting ring. They faced each other, not saying a word of even showing any emotion.

The teacher stood between the two nervously. It was a different tension from Gin's match. But it was just as potent. He swallowed and prepared to speak.

"I have this match covered, Hakamo-sensei." Everyone looked towards the Headmaster. He was walking out to the fighting ring with the Soutaichou beside him. The room became quieter than before.

'His presence is just as stifling as before.' Nanao nodded at Chibara's statement. She could feel his reiatsu pressing down on him. It wasn't as strong as when he attacked her when Ichigo invaded soul society, but it was still strong.

"Welcome everyone to the championship match. This year, two freshmen where added to the roster. And they have also qualified for and early graduation." All of the students sat quietly and listened to the Headmaster. "Their squads have been decided and will be announced after the match. And in this match, since both participants have shown that they possess their Shikai, they will be permitted to release their zanpakutou."

The two men walked off of the at and sat in front of the Gotei 13. The Headmaster nodded for the teacher to begin the match.

"Take your positions!" The teacher looked at each of the students. Nanao and Gin had both drawn their zanpakutou. But neither were tense or rigid, they were relaxed. "Begin!"

Nanao launched herself at Gin. She had kept one of her clips in. She needed to restrict her powers. She swung at Gin's back.

Gin caught sight of her and managed to block her attack. He was surprised by the strength she had. "Not gonna release?" He pushed himself away from her and took a step back. "Yer loss. Shoot To Kill, Shinso!"

Nanao bright her blade up and blocked Shinso. She felt herself loosing grip on the mat. 'Time to use your power against you.' Nanao pushed against Shinso.

They were stuck in a deadlock.

"If ya keep holding it, something gonna go wrong." Gin smiled as he attempted to extend Shinso more.

Nanao knew he was right. She turned her blade and let Shinso slide down its length as it extended. Nanao moved away from his extended blade.

"Got ya." Gin swung his zanpakutou to the side and towards Nanao.

"Madness Rises From The Blood Soaked Ground, Chibara!" Nanao crossed her wrists and caught Gin's blade in the spikes. She turned her right wrist more and extended her left. "Hado 31: Shakkaho!"

Gin quickly retracted Shinso before diving out of the way of the kido. He landed in a crouching position before standing. "Not bad there, Nanao-chan." He took one step forward. A yellow light came out of the floor. "Huh?" He couldn't move his foot. "What's this?"

"Bakudo number nine, Horin." Nanao walked towards Gin slowly.

"Ya do know I can get out of this right? Ya should finish this fight before that." Gin had already begun to work at the kido holding him.

"I know, but I don't like drawing blood or hurting when it is unnecessary." Nanao pointed a single finger at Gin as she concentrated. 'This is going to be overpowered.' She focused reiatsu into her hand. "Carriage of thunder, bridge of a spinning wheel. With light, divide this into six. Bakudo 61: Rikujokoro!"

Gin,s eyes widened as he heard the level of the kido. He was almost out of the current bakudo, but he couldn't get it undone in time. He felt the six beams of light hit him. He tried to smile, but was surprised he couldn't even move his facial expressions. 'She really overpowered her kido.'

Nanao locked her knees. She forgot how weak she got when she had to use the incantation. 'Stupid reiatsu that pours into kidos that I use the incantation for. You guys still haven't found a way to prevent that?!'

'Sorry Nanao-chan. You've got a lot of reiatsu. Even amongst the three of us it's hard.' Chishitoge grumbled loudly.

Nanao turned her attention to the Headmaster and Soutaichou that were making their way to the centre of the ring. The Headmaster motioned for Nanao to join them. Nanao slowly made her way towards them.

"The winner of this year's Senior Tournament, Ise Nanao!" The Headmaster was surprised to hear as loud of a cheer as he did. He smiled at his students then turned to the man beside him. "As is tradition. The Grand Prize is awarded by the Soutaichou."

"This year's prize, is a three night vacation to a hot spring resort in the World of The Living." Yamamoto smiled at the gasp that went through the room. He looked down at the small girl. "You may use it whenever you wish. It does not have to be now or during this year. Or even during the next decade. Just let me know when you would like to use it."

"Thank you ver much, Yamamoto-Soutaichou." Nanao bowed to the Soutaichou and then to the Headmaster.

"I'll announce what squad she is being assigned to while you get the boy out of the bakudo." The Headmaster smiled at his friend. He turned and faced the rest of the members of the Gotei 13 that were present. "Ise Nanao is now a graduate of Shin'o Academy. The Soutaichou has already accepted her into the Gotei 13. And she has been assigned to work under Kyoraku Shunsui in 8th squad."

Nanao noticed Shunsui beam at her happily. She knew she was making the same face at him. She also caught Lisa smiling as well. Shinji did not look pleased at all. She also noticed that Yorichi was frowning a bit too, but she quickly put a smirk on her face. Nanao knew she was up to something.

"Did ya have ta go so high?" Gin smiled at his friend as he stepped up beside her. "Looks like it's my turn."

Yamamoto cleared his voice. "Ichimaru Gin has also been accepted into the Gotei 13. He will be working under Hirako Shinji in 5th squad." Yamamoto noticed the moods of two of his Taichous change dramatically. He kept a straight face, but on the inside he was asking why he had a bunch of children for Taichous.

The Headmaster smiled as he addressed everyone else in the arena. "Thank you to all participants in the tournament. You are all dismissed. The tournament banquette will be tonight at 7." He smiled as all of the students began to file out of the arena. He gave a nod to his friend before heading back towards his office.

Nanao and Gin where going to thank the Soutaichou, but both of them were being picked up by a very enthusiastic Fukutaichou. "You both did wonderful!" Lisa hugged both of them as she spun around. She stopped and was surprised to see gin was no longer on her arms. "Don't just steal kids. That's a crime if I'm not mistaken, Hirako-Taichou."

"He's in my squad, so it is not stealing." Shinji stuck his tongue out as he set Gin on the ground. "And I don't think she likes being spun like that. She looks like she is going to be sick."

Lisa looked down at Nanao. She did look slightly pale. "Does Nanao-chain get motion sick?"

Nanao took several deep breaths. "Not often." She laid her head down on Lisa's shoulder."please don't do that without warning me first, Yadomaru-Fukutaichou."

Lisa hugged her again. "We are going to have to change that. You don't always have to be so formal. Although I am a bit surprised that you didn't get assigned to the kido squad. You seem quite advanced in it." Lisa was surprised, but she was glad Nanao was going to be in 8th.

"That because Yamamoto-Soutaichou asked us if we had a squad we wanted to join." Nanao smiled as Lisa set her down on the ground. Her legs felt like jelly, so she started to fall over.

"Careful with her, Lisa-chan." Shunsui smiled as he walked over to his Fukutaichou and newest squad member.

Lisa held Nanao in her arms again. She guessed the girl had used too much reiatsu in her last kido spell. Really Nanao was just nervous. "Don't worry. I will take good care to make sure you don't corrupt her."

Shunsui gave Lisa and Nanao an innocent looking smile. "Whatever are you talking about, Lisa-chan?"

"Shall I make a list for you, Taichou?" Lisa smirked at Shunsui. She heard Nanao giggle beside her and joined her.

"Nanao-chan?" Nanao and Lisa looked down at the silver haired boy standing beside them. "We should go pack our things. That way we don't have ta do it all tomorrow morning." Gin waited for Lisa to out Nanao down so they could walk back together. They probably wouldn't be able to see each other as much after today.

"Good idea. Can you put me down, Yadomaru-Fukutaichou?" Nanao could feel her feet again, so she guessed she would be able to stand and walk now. Her nervousness was gone.

"Okay, but only if you call me by my name." Lisa smiled as the little girl seemed to get flustered.

'I had a hard enough time when she first asked me. Who would have thought I could slip back into old habits so easily? Let's try something less informal.' Nanao took a deep breath, but she couldn't bring herself to say it. "Yadomaru-senpai?" Nanao asked timidly.

Lisa giggled at the girl. She was being far too cute. "That will do for now. Butt one of these days I will get you to be less formal." Lisa put the girl down.

Nanao walked towards Gin with a smile. "Will we see you all at the banquette?"

"Yep. So go pack so we can see you more." Yorichi smiled as the two kids ran off towards their rooms. "Now we got two kiddies running around. How long till Byakuya-boy joins us?" She directed her question to the Taichou of 6th squad.

Kuchiki Genrei stood and watched silently during most of the encounter with the prodigies. He turned his attention to the Taichou of 2nd squad. "Not for many more years."

~dorms~

Nanao and Gin ran back to their dorms. Nanao's room was first so she wanpved to Gim as he continued running by. She opened her door with a large grin on her face. 'Chishitoge! Gaikotsu! I can't-' Nanao stopped when she shut her door.

Their standing in her room were four shinigami. They all looked at her with surprise. One was going through her closet. Another was checking under her bed. And the other two each held one of her zanpakutou.

Nanao quickly reached up to pull out her hair pins. Her hand was caught by a fifth shinigami that she dint not see.

"Damn it. We weren't suppose to be seen." Nanao turned to get a good look at him. She didn't recognize him, but the crest on his uniform told her he was a central 46 guard.

"Then we take her with us." Nanao looked towards the shinigami walking towards her. She tried to free her hands, but what could a child do against a grown man. "Please stop struggling."

"NO! GET YOUR HANDS OFF MY ZANPAKUTOU!" Nanao doubled her efforts when the shinigami pulled Chibara out of her belt loop. She used the support she had from the man holding her hands to kick the shinigami in front of her. She managed to hit his nose while kicking up. He foot caught on something as it came back down.

"You little brat!" The shinigami went to punch her, but his hand was stopped by one of his comrades. "She deserves it!"

"She's just a kid!" The third shinigami walked up to Nanao and knelt down beside her. "Sorry about him. He gets hotheaded sometimes. Can you please come with us?" He saw Nanao give him a cold glare. "Please forgive me." He brought his hand up to her face. "Tanma Otoshi."

Nanao watched as his hand began to glow and the world in her peripheral vision begin to distort. 'Not...again...Shunsui...help...' Nanao closed her eyes as the world turned to black around her.

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Wow this turned it long. Sorry for the late update. But...I think the length makes up for that. Please give me some feedback. Thank you.


	19. Party is over

I do not own Bleach.

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Shunsui lounged on the large cushion at the front of the courtyard. He did mind being on a raised platform and above all of the other students and party goers. It gave him a good view of the entire courtyard so he could spot his little Nanao-chan.

"I'm surprised you're still on your first bottle." Shunsui looked towards his friend as he sat down on the cushion beside him. "Or are you wanting to be sober for someone?" Jushiro could tell that his friend cared for the newest member of his squad. Hopefully she would inspire him to be a better role model.

Shunsui sighed as he took a drink from his bottle. It was still almost full. "My lovely Nanao-chan has been gone a long time. It's already been seven hours. How long did it take us to pack up our stuff?" Shunsui didn't like thinking back to their academy days much. It made him feel old.

"It didn't take us seven hours. But she is also probably resting and getting ready. She is the champion. And she had two hard matches." Jushiro sipped the tea he had brought with him.

Shunsui sighed again as he set his sake down. "I'm going to go look for her." He waved to his friend as he stepped down from the raised made his way through the crowded courtyard. Once his path was clear, he stepped into shunpo. He was in front of Nanao's door in two steps.

He brought his hand up to knock, but something stopped him. The door wasn't fully closed. "Nanao-chan?" He pushed the door open a bit more. "Nanao-chan?" Still no reply. So he pushed the door fully open.

The room was spotless. Not a thing was out of place. Shunsui frowned deeply, this wasn't right. He spread his reiatsu out around the room. He easily found Nanao's reiatsu signature. It was all over the room. He looked around as he tried to find any others, there were none.

Shunsui went to leave the room and resume his search. But his footstep didn't sound right. He looked down as he moved his foot. Nothing was there. He lifted his foot and looked on the bottom. There was something stuck. He easily pulled it off and looked at it.

His eyes widened as he held the small piece of fabric in his hand. He ran out of the room and spread his reiatsu out as far as he could. He couldn't locate his little Nanao-chan. Nor could he find a solid path of where she went. It was lost in the mix of all of the other students.

He so bed his fist onto the railing, nearly splintering it. "Damn it!" He growled as he turned to head towards the strongest reiatsu on the campus.

"Taichou?!" Lisa stood at the bottom of the stairs and looked up at her Taichou. She had left the party the moment she felt Shunsui spread out his reiatsu. She didn't know what would cause him to be so frustrated. He was usually pretty laid back. "What's the matter?"

"Nanao-chan is gone." Shunsui spoke it softly as he walked past her. He pulled his hat down as he made his way towards the main building.

Lisa was shocked by the statement. She didn't want it to be true. "Are you sure? She may just be at the party-"

"-I'm positive. Her room was spotless and unpacked. And I know who took her. Please go back an enjoy the party. I need to speak with Yamaji alone." Shunsui picked up his pace. He wanted to do what he could as quickly as he could.

Lisa couldn't help the worried feeling she had. She couldn't explain the attachment she had with the small girl, but she loved her like her own little sister.

"What got you in a sad mood?" Lisa turned to find Shinji and ?Gin walking towards her. "Did the flirt tell you something lecherous again?"

"Why would that make me sad?" Lisa didn't understand Shinji's logic at times.

"Do ya like him?" Gin smiled at Lisa. He cowered a bit when she glared at him. "Scary."

"Have either of you seen Nanao-chan?" Lisa trusted that Shunsui was right about her missing, but he always went a bit overboard she he was even just a bit drunk.

"No. But there are quite a lot of people in there. And she is very small." Shinji rubbed the back of his neck. It had been a long day.

"She ain't in her room? That was the last place I saw her." Gin's smile dropped a bit. He was worried for his friend.

"Kyoraku says she isn't there. And that her room is unpacked." Lisa had easily picked up on the main point that caused Shunsui to believe she wasn't at the party.

"That ain't like Nanao-chan. Maybe it's the same as with ma room." Gin crossed his arms as he frowned.

Shinji looked down at hie new subordinate. "What was wrong with your room?"

"Nothin'. I did hear people runnin' away down the hall. And ma room was too clean. Ma room has never been as clean as when I went to pack. Which means that someone was in there. And they were lookin' fer somethin'." Gin didn't like people touching his things. Especially his friends. He didn't consider that he had many.

Lisa and Shinji exchanged a look. They knew what had happened to his room. Lisa turned and ran towards the pulsating reiatsu of her Taichou. She now knew why he was so crossed. And she was as well.

~Headmaster's office~

Shunsui didn't bother knocking. He never did. And he could only sense one reiatsu coming from the office. "Evening Yamaji."

"Will you ever knock before entering a room?" Yamamoto sighed as he finished the early graduation forms for the two prodigies.

"Not if it's something like this." He walked up to the desk and leaned on it with his hands. "Did you put in an order for Nanao-chan and Gin-chan to be investigated by central 46?" He removed his hand from the desk. A central 46 guard patch lay perfectly flat on the desk.

Yamamoto frowned at the piece of fabric. "I did not. The only reason they would, would be if someone told them something wasn't right. But I put in no such order. But why does it matter?" They stopped searching graduates years ago. It was too tedious and nothing was ever found, usually.

"Nanao-chan is missing. She is no where on campus or anywhere near the campus." Shunsui crossed his arms as he tried to think of who would have asked for an investigation of the prodigies. He had assumed Gin had also been searched.

"So that was you." Yamamoto had thought it curious that Shunsui had spread out his reiatsu as far as he did. Yamamoto looked towards the open window. A hell butterfly fluttered in and landed on his outstretched finger. "The Soutaichou requests an immediate audience with central 46." He let the hell butterfly to and deliver his message. "If she has been arrested by central 46, then there is nothing we can do for now. Other than to wait."

Shunsui didn't like that answer at all. He didn't like being unable to do nothing.

"Go and wait in your office. If she has nothing to hide, they will return her to you. And will most likely return her straight to 8th squad." Yamamoto didn't like the solution either. Central 46 usually never gave back any shinigami they arrested. At least not whole.

"Thanks Yamaji." Shunsui tipped his hat down. He kept the growl he wanted to unleash to himself. He walked o of the office and headed for the front gate. He found Lisa soon walking beside him.

Lisa could feel the tension coming off of him. It fluttered around him like his pink kimono. "What did you find?"

"Nothing good." Shunsui managed to keep the anger out of his voice. "We're heading back to 8th."

Lisa was surprised to say the least. "Why?" Lisa knew he never went to the office unless it was for something important. And it didn't involve paperwork.

"To wait." Shunsui could hear the defeat in his own voice. He quickly stepped into shunpo and headed for his office. Lisa following behind him.

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Please leave a comment or question. I would be happy to clarify any questions you have this far. Unless they would be spoilers.


	20. Judgement

I do not own Bleach.

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*BANG BAN BANG*

Nanao's head shot up. She quickly shut her eyes against the blinding light. She didn't know where she was. But she was aware of the restraints thing her to a chair as well as suppressing her reiatsu.

"We are now in session. We are here to discuss the grave crimes of this child before us." Nanao opened her eyes again. They widens as she realized where she was. In she was the central 46 chambers. "Have you anything to say child?"

Nanao swallowed and hoped her voice wouldn't sound to weak. "Where are my zanpakutou?" She spoke calm and coldly to the people around her.

"In front of you." Nanao looked down as a table lit up. All three of her zanpakutou layed on the table. "Who do the other zanpakutou belong to?"

"All three are mine." Nanao spoke calmly. 'Chibara? Chishitoge? Gaikotsu?'

'We are here, Nanao-chan.' Nanao was released she could still hear them. She was worried about what they might have done to them.

'Pay attention. They are discussing us.' Nanao turned her focus back to the members of central 46. She knew Chibara was right. She needed to get out of here. Alive, not a threat, and hopefully with all three of her zanpakutou.

"That is outrageous! No shinigami can have more than one zanpakutou!" Nanao couldn't tell were the voices were coming from. So she kept her head down.

"I do not have more than one. It is one zanpakutou split into three forms." Nanao spoke as calmly as she could.

"Impossible! How can a zanpakutou have three distinct forms?!" A woman yelled out above the rest of the murmuring noise.

"But Kyoraku-Taichou's zanpakutou is in a daisho pair!" A man defended. "Why is it so outrageous for it to be in three?"

"He is right! If we are placing charges on her for the doings of her own soul, why have we not done the same for him?!" A woman lashed out in Nanao's defence. "Are we corrupt?!"

"She is a child! She has too much power for her own good! Kyoraku Shunsui was in full control of his powers when he gained his zanpakutou!" A man called out with a gruff voice.

"But she has even limited her own power! Her barrettes would be powerful enough to even suppress Kyoraku-Taichou!" A man shouted out. "Plus she has only been using a third of her zanpakutou's power! This limiting her power even more!"

"SILENCE!" The room grew quiet. Nanao knew where the voice came from this time. It was from whoever was sitting behind the panel with a "1" written on it. "Arguing will not solve the problem." The room grew ever so silent. "It has been brought to our attention, that to allow you to enter the Gotei 13 at your current level, you would be a threat to the peace of Soul Society."

"WHAT?!" Nanao glared at the panel blocking her view from the man's face.

"Be silent!" The man spoke calmly and assertively. "We will now decide how we shall limit your powers."

"YOU CAN'T DO THAT!" Nanao struggled against her restraints. "Was it Aizen-Fukutaichou that told you this? WAS IT!"

"SILENCE!" He was amazed she could struggle against the restraints. That was t suppose to be possible. She truly was a threat. "We can restrain your powers, and we shall. But we would not be worthy of our positions if we were to deal with you unjustly. You are a child." He took a breath to calm himself. "You need not know who told us, but that it was done in your best interest."

'Best interest my ass.' Chishitoge growled angrily. None of the zanpakutous liked where the conversation was going.

"We shall seal away two of your zanpakutou. Once you have reached the level of Fukutaichou, we shall return one to you. And your third shall be returned once you have achieved the rank of Taichou." The man could hear some complaining from his fellow members.

'Without all three of you I can never get Bankai.' Nanao kept her face calm as she panicked on the inside. 'And it hurt enough to have Chibara away from me for a few hours. How am I suppose to last centuries with out two of you?!'

'Nanao...take the deal.' Nanao was surprised by her third cat. 'Listen. You have a chance of keeping most of us. And still a slight chance of having us all back. You should take it. I can wait for you.'

'Gaikotsu...why?' Nanao could feel tears burning behind her eyes.

'Because I love you...and it will help us most.' Gaikotsu soothed her through her inner world. 'Now tell them. The longer you wait, the harder it will be to convince them.'

Nanao took a shaky breath. "That is unfair." She spoke softly, but everyone seemed to hear her. The room was quiet once more. "How am I suppose to become a Taichou if can't get Bankai?"

The room was filled with murmuring and chatting. It soon died out.

"All I favour of the proposition made by Number 1?" Number 2 spoke calmly as she lit up her panel.

Nanao watched as all of the panels in the room lit up.

"It is decided then." Number 1 spoke calmly as the door beneath his platform opened. "Which zanpakutou do you wish to keep with you?"

Nanao looked down at her lap. She didn't want to look at her zanpakutou while she chose. "My wakizashi, Chibara." A guard placed her zanpakutou on her lap. She brought her eyes up and looked towards the table. A bowl of some white liquid sat in front of the table.

"This is melted sekkiseki stone. We will be coating your zanpakutou in it." Number 1spoke as a Guard picked up her katana.

'Don't worry about me, Nanao. I will wait for you-' Nanao's throat tightened as she lost the sound of his voice and the feel of his presence. She felt loneliness settle over her.

She heard cleaning as they set the stone covered sword back on the table. She watched as they attempted to pick up Chishitoge, but miasma rose from it.

'LIKE HELL I'M LETTING THESE IDIOTS DO THE SAME TO ME!' Nanao could hear the contention running through the room.

'Chishitoge...please listen.' Nanao waited till she had her cat's attention. 'I know your scared, but so am I. I don't want to lose you, any of you. But this isn't a fight we can win without consequences. And the consequences would mean that we couldn't stop Aizen.' Nanao could feel the guilt run through her cat as he stopped resisting. 'I promise I won't leave you trapped and alone for long.'

'You better not!' Chishitoge yelled at Nanao. 'Nanao could hear him already begin to fade. 'Good luck, Nanao-'

Nanao couldn't hold it in after that. She dropped her head and began to cry silently. It felt like her soul was being torn apart. She felt so empty and her mind was so quiet. 'I've lost them.'

'We will get them back.' Chibara comforted his master. They were both in pain.

"Escort her to 8th squad. Her Taichou can take care of her from there." Number 1 watched as the guards removed the bindings on the small child. The child curled up and continued to cry, so the guards had to carry her out of the room.

Nanao didn't even notice they were taking her away from the room. She had closed her eyes and fallen into a fitful sleep. Her heart hurt too much for anything peaceful.

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Please leave a comment.


	21. Returning

I do not own Bleach.

* * *

Shunsui sat at his desk. He hadn't slept all night. He was too worried about his newest squad member.

"Tea, Taichou?" Lisa walked into the office with a tray of tea and muffins. She had stayed with him and worked on paperwork. There was nothing else to do. Lisa set the tray down on the small table in front of the plushy pink couch that was in the office. "You've been stressed." Lisa was surprised at the three large stacks of paperwork on Shunsui's desk.

"This is a stressful situation. Yamaji hasn't gotten any news about Nanao-chan and she isn't back yet. Sake would be better. But you moved all of my stashes." Shunsui frowned at Lisa before walking towards her.

"Um...Taichou?" Lisa and Shunsui looked towards the door to their office. A squad member stood in the door. She had something in her arms. "Guards from central 46 just dropped her off at the gate. I haven't seen her before though."

Shunsui could feel a weak reiatsu, but he knew who's it was. "Nanao-chan." He walked towards his subordinate and took Nanao out of her arms. "Thank you, I will take care of her from here."

"Hai!" The shinigami left down the hall after bowing to her Taichou.

"Nanao? But it feel so much weaker than yesterday." Lisa was worried about what central 46 had done to the small girl.

"I'm heading to 4th squad." Shunsui held Nanao gently as he made his way to 4th squad as fast as he could. He made his way around 4th squad till he found Unahana in her office. "Retsu-chan?"

"Kyoraku? I'm surprised you're up this early." Unahana knew he wasn't a morning person at all. She looked at him with worry. "What is the-" she noticed the small body in his arms. "Ise-san? What happened to her?" She walked up to the man and examined the small girl. She frowned as she examined her. "Follow me."

Shunsui followed the woman through the hospital to a private room. He laid Nanao down on the bed in the room. He chuckles as he notices the grip she has on his kimono. "She seems to really like my kimono."

"Or she feels safe near it." Unahana stepped around to the other side of the bed. "It looks like she has been crying." Unahana easily noticed the red around Nanao's eyes. She use a kido to lessen the irritation and redness. "What happened to her?"

Shunsui put his hand on Nanao's. Her knuckles were white from the grip she had on her zanpakutou. "Central 46 just gave her back. I don't know what happened to her." Shunsui couldn't remember when he felt this helpless before. "Can you help her?"

Unahana frowned again. "There aren't any physical wounds. But it seems her soul has been torn. It is smaller than when I last examined her."

"Her soul is torn?" Shunsui couldn't remember where he had heard something similar to that.

"It was caused by central 46 sealing away most of her powers." Unahana and Kyoraku looked towards the door to the room. Yamamoto walked into the room slowly. "Central 46 deemed that she was too powerful for her age, so they sealed away two-thirds of her power."

"Why? Isn't that what training is suppose to do? Helping her to control her powers?" Shunsui frowned at Yamamoto. Central 46's decision didn't make sense.

"Central 46 has made their decision. There is nothing that can be done." Yamamoto knew his student wouldn't like his answer, but there wasn't anything that could be done now.

Unahana frowned as she tucked Nanao in with the kimono she held in her fist. "They used too cruel of a method to seal her powers. No wonder she is so tense and frightened looking." She smoothed out Nanao's hair.

"I'll stay with her till she wakes up." Shunsui pulled a chair up beside Nanao's bed.

"She is completely healthy. So why don't you take her back to 8th. I'm sure your Fukutaichou is also worried about her. And don't you have paperwork to do?" Yamamoto turned and walked out of the room while speaking to his former student.

Shunsui got a nod from Unahana telling him it was alright. He made sure his kimono was wrapped around Nanao before walking out of the room. He gently kissed Nanao's forehead and smiled at her now calm face. "I'm sorry Nanao-chan. I couldn't protect you. But I promise I will keep you from harm from now on."

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Please give some feedback.


	22. Awakening

I do not own Bleach.

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Nanao awoke to a soft bouncing feeling. It was almost unnoticeable. She inhaled deeply and smiled at the familiar scent of her husband. She snuggled into the solid chest beside her. She felt a chuckled resonate in Shunsui's chest.

"Good morning, Nanao-chan." Shunsui couldn't help the laugh. The small child seemed to be very attached to him.

Nanao frowned a bit. Usually she got a kiss when she woke up. 'He isn't your husband yet, Nanao-sama.' Nanao frowned more when the memories of the past few days came back to her.

She peeked out of her eyes a bit, but not much. The sun had already risen and was blindingly bright. "We am I?" She closed her eyes and pulled the silky kimono tighter around her.

Shunsui smiled as he held her in his arms. "You're safe."

"Where are we going?" Nanao was really paying attention much. Her body was telling her to sleep, but her mind was awake. This was why she was a morning person.

"Nanao-chan's room isn't set up yet. So my lovely Nanao-chan is going to spend time with me and Lisa-chan in the office." Shunsui smiled at the guards at the gate to 8th squad.

"The office is for working, not sleeping." Nanao tried to open her eyes again. She got one open, but the other refused to open. She shut them both again before trying a second time.

Shunsui laughed a bit at Nanao's attempt to wake up. "I sleep in the office all the time. Especially when the sun is shining through the windows."

"Are you part cat?" Nanao managed to get her eyes open. But she blinked and couldn't open them again. She decided to give up and try to sleep again.

Shunsui tried to silence the laugh that fought it's way to his lips, but he failed. "Hahaha. No, my clever Nanao-chan. I am not part cat."

Nanao wrapped her arms around herself. She frowned when she realized something was missing. "Where is my zanpakutou?" She could feel that Chibara was close, but she didn't feel him on her.

"Don't worry Nanao-chan. I have it. He is surprisingly comfortable with me holding him. Is he usually like this? Most zanpakutou don't let other people hold them." Shunsui was even surprised to feel the zanpakutou humming in his hand.

Nanao smiled and giggled a bit. "Chibara has always been a good judge of character."

Shunsui smiled at Nanao as he slid the office door open with his foot. He closed it the same way. "Good morning, Lisa-chan." He spoke only loud enough for Lisa to hear.

"Morning Taichou." Lisa didn't even look up from her paperwork. She had picked up Shunsui's stress habit of over working herself. That happens when you have been his Fukutaichou for 80+ years.

"Morning...Yadomaru *YAWN* Fukutaichou." Nanao opened a single eye, but it was soon closed once again.

Lisa looked up surprised. She smiled as she saw where Nanao was. She couldn't help but smile at the scene of Nanao curled up in Shunsui's arms. It looked perfect. "Tired, Nanao-chan?"

Nanao nodded her head as she peeled her eyes open. She got them to slits, but no further. "I'm usually an early riser. It's probably sometime after ten right?"

Lisa and Shunsui both looked at the clock. It was 10:42.

"She's accurate." Lisa went back to her paperwork, but with less vigour than before.

"If I sleep in past ten, I usually sleep for most of the day. And if I get up at around six, then I have the most energy." Nanao let her eyes fall closed again. She knew she was going to lose her battle against her body's sleep pattern.

Shunsui could tell Nanao was falling asleep again. He laid her down on the couch and tucked his kimono around her again. "Sleep, my little Nanao-chan. You've had a rough night."

"I don't remember it. At least not all of it." Nanao covered half of her face. She knew he would detect her lies if he saw her lips.

Shunsui pushed her hair out of her face and tucked it behind her ear. "You don't have to remember any of it. Sleep, sweet lovely Nanao-chan."

"Stop that." Nanao felt sleep pull her away. "Thank you, Tai...chou."

Shunsui smiled as he watched her breathing even out and her face relax into a peaceful expression. "Sleep well, Nanao-chan." He placed a kiss on her forehead before standing and walking to his desk.

He saw Lisa smiling at him. "What are you thinking about, Lisa-chan?" He smirked as she came back to herself.

Lisa gave him a flat look. "Wouldn't you like to know, Taichou." She returned to her work.

Shunsui raised an eyebrow. She usually didn't act so cold to him. "Did I do something?"

Lisa looked at him from over her glasses. "Not yet. And you better hope you don't do anything wrong. I will protect her from your influence."

"I think, out of the two of us, you would be the worse influence." Shunsui found himself on his back with a back sliding down his face. "Was it something I said?" He asked jokingly with a laugh.

Lisa just rolled her eyes at him. He knew how to irritate her easily. "Just sit down and do your work, Taichou."

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Please leave a comment or a question.


	23. Getting Started

I do not own Bleach.

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Nanao was quickly brought out of the darkness of her mind. 'Too hot!' She sat up and looked around the room curiously. She was in the office. But why was she sleeping. She never slept a in her office.

"Are you okay Nanao-chan?" Nanao looked towards the voice that spoke to her. She wasn't surprised to see Lisa sitting at the Fukutaichou desk. But her hair didn't seem right.

'Nanao-sama, we are not in our time.' Nanao fully woke up fully as she remembered what she had gone through. 'Lisa is speaking to you.'

"Nanao-chan? Are you still asleep?" Lisa could tell the girl was still tired. She looked like she was still asleep.

Nanao stretched as she pushed the pink kimono off of her. 'I really need to be more conscious of what I hold onto when I fall asleep.' Nanao gave Lisa a smile as she stood up from the couch. "I'm fine. I just can't sleep anymore. It's noon right?"

"Yep. Are you hungry?" Lisa squared off her papers as she finished off the last sheet she had to finish.

"A bit." Nanao pulled the kimono off of the couch and looked over at Shunsui. He was asleep with his head on his desk. Nanao walked over and pulled a stool over as well. She draped his kimono over his back. 'Much better.'

"You shouldn't encourage his sleeping." Lisa couldn't help but smile at Nanao's action. She looked like she was taking care of him. She was rather cute.

"But he was already asleep." Nanao put the stool back where she found it. She walked over to Lisa's desk with a smile. "What is the training schedule?"

Lisa fished through the drawers in her desk to look for a schedule. She pulled out a single sheet and handed it to the girl. "It's Monday today. So right now is lunch. And them it is kido training. We will start you on the regular schedule. Then move you up in levels depending on how skilled you are." Lisa smiled as the girl studied her schedule. "Find me after your Zanjutsu training. Your room should be done by then, 3rd seated officer in 8th squad."

Nanao looked up curiously. She saw Lisa wink at her. "Really? 3rd seat?"

"Yep. I'll show you how to do that paperwork tomorrow." Lisa smiled as the girl walked around her desk and towards the door. "If you don't know how to find your way, just ask someone."

"Okay." Nanao closed the office door behind her with a smile. 'Its nice being home.'

'Even though this isn't your time?' Nanao began walking towards the mess hall as Chibara spoke. 'And you aren't suppose to know your way around?'

'You have become surprisingly talkative.' Nanao felt her zanpakutou blush. 'Didn't know you could blush Chibara. Is it because Chishitoge isn't around to talk all the time?' Nanao could feel the loneliness her zanpakutou felt about not having his brother around. 'I miss him too. So let's do all we can to get him back.'

~back at the office~

"You seem happy, Taichou." Lisa didn't need to look at him to see the large grin on his face. She knew he had woken up when Nanao had draped his kimono on his back. He was a relatively light sleeper.

Shunsui opened his eyes and ran the edges of his kimono between his fingers. "It's still warm. And she was much too cute. My little Nanao-chan." He sat up and stretched before getting up and walking to the door.

"And where do you think you are going?" Lisa adjusted her glasses as she watched her Taichou walk past her desk.

Shunsui tipped his sakkat as he opened the office door. "Just going to make sure she doesn't get lost. We have a very large division area." He began following the playful reiatsu that he knew was Nanao. He hid around corners as he followed her.

He he saw her looking around when she came to a four way split in the hallway. He was going to approach her, but she seems to have chosen a path and was following it. He smiled as he followed her down the hallway that led away from the mess hall.

he followed her for about ten minutes. Pretty soon he had even lost track of where they were. 'I think my little Nanao-chan got lost.' He chuckled silently as the girl continued to walk down hallways and take random turns.

'Maybe she knows you are following her. And she is trying to lose you.' Shunsui frowned at Katen Kyokotsu's suggestion.

'Why would my lovely Nanao-chan do that?' He looked around the corner he was hiding behind. Nanao wasn't in front of him. 'And now I have lost her. I can't find her reiatsu either.'

"Are you lost, Kryoraku-Taichou?" Shunsui nearly jumped. He turned and found Nanao looking up at him. she had an almost annoyed look on her face.

"Not at all my dear sweet Nanao-chan. Was just taking a lovely walk." Shunsui smiled at her as he started walking down the hall again. He was happy she had decided to follow him. "And where is Nanao-chan heading to?"

"I'm trying to find the mess hall. But I think I got lost." Shunsui wondered if she was really lost. She had a knowing tone in her voice. Nanao gave Shunsui a smile that looked very similar to a smirk. "Could you show me where it is?"

"Of course, my dear Nanao-chan." Shunsui offered his hand to the little girl. He smiled as she took it. He easily found the large mass of reiatsu that he guessed was the mess hall. It was lunch, so everyone should be heading towards there.

"Thank you." Shunsui looked down at Nanao, he was surprised to see a bit of pink on her cheeks. Nanao liked being able to hold Shunsui's hand. She hand missed the feeling of them. "Thank you for following me."

'Nicely done, Nanao-chan.' Chibara had wondered how she was going to pull off not knowing where everything was. And this was perfect.

'Don't you start with that too!' Nanao was wondering how long it would take for everyone to start calling her that. She guessed not long.

Shunsui was surprised she had known he was following her. 'Told you. When are we ever wrong?' Shunsui rolled his eyes at his zanpakutou. Today was going to be a difficult day.

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Sorry about not having longer chapters. Having a bit of trouble with wording them. Please leave a comment or a question.


	24. Kido Training

I do not own Bleach.

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Nanao made her way towards the kido training grounds after lunch. Shunsui had told her the shortest way to get there. She was curious as to why everyone was huddle at one end of the grounds. And why there was someone watching the group.

Nanao made her way to the group. "Excuse me?" Nanao tugged on the pant leg of one of the shinigami.

The shinigami turned and looked at the small girl. He didn't recognize her. "Hi. Are you lost?" He could see that she was wearing a shikahosho, but he didn't remember there being a child in 8th squad. But what was it Kyoraku-Taichou was talking about earlier?

"No. I am Ise Nanao. I just joined 8th squad. Why is everyone standing around?" Nanao looked around him and caught sight of the person watching the group look towards her. She blocked herself from his sight.

"Oh! You're the prodigy that Taichou said was going to join our squad. I'm Enjoji Tatsufusa. 7th seated officer." The man stood tall and smiled at the small child.

'To think he will one day have my current position.' Nanao returned his smile with her own polite smile. "Yep. Who is the instructor for the class?" Nanao couldn't see anyone else that she recognize to well.

"That would be me!" Nanao looked up at him as he put his fists on his hips and looked off towards the horizon. "Now everyone, line up and we will begin."

'Please tone it down. Was he always like this?' Nanao held herself back from shaking her head. She got in a line with other squad members. 'I can feel that guy's gaze on my back.'

'Try to ignore him. Macho man is speaking.' Chibara laughed with Nanao as she pulled her attention away from him.

"Today we will be practising leve 50 and above kido. I will demonstrate first and you can follow after. I will also ask you to do kido that is below level 50. And if you wish, you may attempt them without incantation." Enjoji smiled at the group of about 30 shinigami lined up. He expected to have a few move up to the advanced class today as well. But the kido squad member had him a bit worried.

Nanao waited and watched. She was fourth from the front in her line. So it didn't take long for her turn to come up.

"Let's see Hado 31 without an incantation, if you can." Enjoji smiled at this group. This one had a few people he expected to move to the advanced class with Yadomaru-Fukutaichou. And it had the prodigy in it.

Nanao waited as the people closest to Enjoji fired off their kido. It got to her and she brought her had up. "Hado 31: Shakkaho!" Nanao smiled as the red ball shot down the field and hit the target dead on.

Enjoji was very impressed by this group. "Next group!" He was definitely going to keep an eye on the little prodigy. And he noticed the kido squad member was also watching her. 'Going to have to warn Taichou about that.'

Nanao stood in the line and waited quietly. 'What am I going to do? If I have to use the incantation it is going to be over powered, by a lot.' She took several breaths to calm down. But they weren't helping.

'I will see what I can do. You have reduced power, so I might be able to stop the heavy flow of reiatsu to your kido.' Chibara was pretty sure he could help her. He was the main kido part of her zanpakutou after all. 'Your up.'

Nano stepped up to the line and waited for Enjoji to tell them which kido to use.

Enjoji smiled at this group. He was going to give them a challenge. "This one might be a bit too high. But most of you will qualify for the advanced class. So, let's see Hado 77: Soren Sokatsui."

Nanao stood and watched as only a few squad members were able to perform the kido. None made it down the field. 'This isn't good. I refuse to mess up a kido deliberately.'

'Then don't. Maybe they will put you in an even more advanced class.' Chibara knew she was worried they would just transfer her to the kido squad. 'And don't worry. I doubt Shunsui will let them take you.'

'Thanks Chibara.' Nanao held up her hand and took a deep breath. "Ye lord! Mask of blood and flesh, l creation, flutter of wings, he who hears the name of man! On the wall of blue flame, inscribe a twin lotus. In the abyss of conflagration, it at the far heavens. Hado 77: Soren Sokatsui!"

Everyone was in awe as two blue balls shot down the field and blew up the target, as well as part of the nearby targets. Most could see the kido was a bit overpower.

Enjoji smiled widely. "Great job, Ise-san! Now, who can tell me what to do when you fail a kido?"

Silence filled the area. No one said a word for a while. "Run for your life?" Laughter rippled through the shinigami.

Enjoji cleared his throat trying not to laugh. "That is a good strategy, but not the answer. If you are it on a mission and you fail a kido spell, what should you do? Or a better question, what should the others on the mission with you do?" He caught sight of the small prodigy put her hand up. He couldn't help but think how cute that was. "Yes, Ise-chan?"

'Oh great.' Nanao ignored the nickname that was developing. "Your squad mates should provide some cover so you can recover from the failed kido. And you shouldn't get frustrated. Frustration causes kido to fail more often. And to prevent failing a kido on a mission, you should only use kido you have consistently succeeded at on the practise field."

"Thank you very much, Ise-chan. That is a very good answer." Enjoji noticed the kido squad member stand and make his way towards the group. 'This can't be good.'

Everyone turned and watched as the shinigami walked up to their group. "Ise Nanao. Please follow me."

Nanao looked from the shinigami to Enjoji. She didn't want to go.

Enjoji knelt beside her and put a hand on her shoulder. "Go on. I will tell Kyoraku-Taichou." He got a nod from the small girl as she walked towards the kido squad member. He whispered to one of the shinigami near him. "Continue to practise. I will be back." He ran off towards 8th squad office. He hoped his Taichou was there. Or at least the Fukutaichou.

Nano walked beside the shinigami and tried to match his pace. He didn't seem to try and slow down for her. 'How did they know where is was? And I just got put here. So they shouldn't be trying to get me transferred...' Nanao stopped when she caught sight of Aizen standing on the roof of the building in front of them.

'I guess he wants you out of the Gotei 13. Is it too late to identify him as your attacker?' Chibara didn't like the fear that man instilled on his master.

'It probably is too late. But I won't let him have his way. I guess this is a very time to have an overprotective and clingy Taichou.' Nanao held in her laugh thinking of how hard she had tried to get Shunsui to stop thinking of her as a damsel in distress.

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Sorry for the late update. Please leave a comment.


	25. Transfer Request

I do not own Bleach.

* * *

Shunsui lounged happily on the couch. He had had a wonderful lunch with Nanao and he was going to accompany her and Lisa when she went to show Nanao to her barracks. All in all, today was actually becoming a very good day.

*KNOCK KNOCK*

"Come in." Lisa didn't even look up from her paperwork. Nothing serious usually happened around 8th. Maybe a few drunken accidents, but nothing that qualified as an emergency.

Shunsui lifted his sakkat and looked at who was sliding the door open. It was Enjoji, by wasn't he teaching a class right now. "Sorry for interrupting your day. But I thought you should know that a member of the kido squad was watching my class. And before we had even begun any real practise, he asked Ise Nanao to follow him. And I believe he is most likely taking her to 1st squad to transfer-" Enjoji stopped talking when he realized neither Taichou of Fukutaichou were in the office anymore.

Shunsui and Lisa got up on the roofs as soon as they got out of the office building. "Why would the kido squad be interested in her?" Lisa could easily keep up with Shunsui. Even when he was moving faster than usual. "She didn't show that she was skilled in it other than in her final match. And no one from kido squad showed up for that."

"They probably were there. Just hiding." Shunsui was frustrated. They had planned it for when she would be out and not have been around the squad much. It was always easier to get transfers before shinigami got comfortable in their squads.

~1st squad compound~

Nanao looked up at the number on the gate. She quickly followed behind the shinigami. "Why are we at 1st squad?" She didn't bother to smile. She was annoyed beyond belief. She half wanted to blast him through a wall, but then that would just cause more problems.

"We are making a transfer request with the Soutaichou." This was the first time he had spoken to her since they left 8th squad compounds.

"I don't want a transfer. I just arrived here." Nanao crossed her arms and glared at the shinigami out of the corner of her eyes.

"You are nothing but a child. The kido squad is a much safer place for you. And you are more adept to kido than any other form of fighting." Nanao was starting to get annoyed with his blunt and formal explanation. And his voice just got on her nerves.

"I don't care. I chose 8th squad. If I had wanted those things, I still would have chosen 8th squad. I have no desire to be in the kido squad." Nanao spoke as calmly as she could. But she was getting down to her last straw.

"You are being childish." Nanao had had enough. "Wait here while I speak with the Soutaichou." Nanao looked up and saw they were standing in front of the Soutaichou's office.

She let the kido in her mind fade as the shinigami walked into the office and the door slam in her face. She leaned against the wall as she tapped her foot and growled under her breath.

"Nanao-chan looks cute when she is upset." Nanao didn't manage to keep the squeak behind her lips as she jumped away from Shunsui. Shunsui smiled as he picked her up, she was blushing

Nanao couldn't help the blush that spread over her face. "Don't sneak up like that!"

Shunsui gas Nanao a small pout. "But it is so much fun. And Nanao-chan looks so cute."

Lisa gave Shunsui a small glare. "Behave yourself. She is the child, not you."

"But I'm not being childish." Shunsui gave Lisa a frowned as he walked towards the door to Yamamoto's office. "I'm being protective."

"Over protective." Nanao spoke under her breath.

Shunsui smiled as he caught Nanao's words. "I will always protect my cute little Nanao-chan. She is my cute little subordinate and I will not have her sent away to the kido squad." Shunsui pushed open the doors to Yamamoto's office. "Morning, Yamaji!"

"It is three in the afternoon, Shunsui." Yamamoto growled at be of his oldest Taichous. "And do you ever intend to knock before entering?"

"That just takes too long." Shunsui waved away Yamamoto's comment as he turned his eyes to the other shinigami in the room. He could tell the man was a bit frightened of him. 'So he was hoping to have this all finished before I even found out about it.'

Yamamoto sighed as he set his pen down on his desk. "Where you aware of Ise-san's request to change squads?"

"That's a lie!" Nanao blushed when everyone looked at her. 'Need to stop drawing attention to myself.' She buried her face in Shunsui's kimono. "Sorry for speaking out."

Shunsui couldn't help the chuckle that came up. "I think that clears up this misunderstanding." He tipped his hat to his mentor as he turned to leave the office. "Nesxt time, I think you should ask if the shinigami wishes to be transferred before you make a request." He directed the last statement at the kido squad member. He looked to be grindig his teeth together.

Nanao pulled her face out of his kimono once she got the large grin off of her face. She loved the smell of it.

"Now that that crisis is over, let's go get dinner." Shunsui smiled as he led the way out of 1st squad.

"Do you always speak so disrespectfully towards the Soutaichou?" Nanao had always wondered how Yamamoto had allowed Shunsui to speak to him that way.

"It's not disrespectful, I just know him really well." Shunsui shifted Nanao in his arms so he could look at her. "And since you know me very well, you can call me Shunsui."

"That is unprofessional, Taichou." Nanao managed to drop her smile and slip into her professional persona.

Lisa and Shunsui laughed a bit at how serious Nanao could be. It just made her even more adorable. "But that doesn't mean we won't try." Lisa managed to snatch Nanao out of Shunsui's arms. A game of capture the Nanao ensued from there until they reached 8th again.

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	26. Connecting

I do not own Bleach.

* * *

In the weeks following, Nanao had been moved to the advanced kido, hakuda, and hoho classes. She was only held back in her zanjutsu class because she kept using only one hand.

Nanao was spending most of her time in the kido training area. She was trying to get back to her previous power level. Which was basically every kido spell without an incantation, but she couldn't seem to go above 60 without an incantation.

She sat in the porch with her hand in a bucket of ice as she waited for it to numb. 'This while power ructions sucks. I haven't burned myself with kido since I tried the sorcery kido all those years ago.'

'You will just have to get used to it.' Chibara purred as he tried to comfort his master.

"Need any help?" Nanao looked above her. Lisa was standing over her with a smile. "That looked like it hurt."

"Not that much. I've had worse before I went to the academy." Nanao pulled her hand out of the ice bucket. She could barely feel it, but it began to burn again once she took it out. She hissed and put her hand back in the bucket. "I can't concentrate enough to heal it."

Lisa sat down beside the girl and gently pulled her hand out. She held the girl,s hand between her own as she healed it. "That's why fourth squad rarely fights. Pain takes away needed concentration. You've gotten stronger since we got you back from Central 46." Lisa was glad the girl was progressing. But worried Central 46 might see her as a bigger threat and seal away mor of her power.

"Stupid Central 46." Nanao mumbled under her breath.

"Yep, stupid Central 46." Lisa released Nanao's hand once it was healed.

Nanao flexed her hand as the feeling returned to it. "Yadomaru-senpai? What is that book you are always carrying around?"

Lisa smiled as the child used something other than Fukutaichou to address her. She tended to use it when it was just them. "Didn't I tell you to use my name?" She noticed the blush spread across the girl's cheeks. "Do you want to look at it with me?"

Nanao looked towards Lisa with wide eyes. "What is it?" Nanao took the hand that was extended to her and followed Lisa through the buildings.

Lisa opened the door to her quarters and pulled a large pillow off of her bed and set it on the porch. "Come sit." She patted her lap.

Nanao sat down and ran her hand over the cover of the book Lisa placed in her lap. "Sorcery kido?" Nanao looked up at Lisa curiously. 'Wasnt this in the Taichou restricted section?'

'Well that was were you found it wasn't it?' Chibara laughed as Nanao blushed again.

Lisa opened the book to one of the pages. It was written in a strange script, but Lisa had figured out how to read it. "Do you want me to read it?"

Nanao's eyes widened at the text. It had been a long time since she had looked through this book. And it was in better condition than she remembered. "I can get some of it. What is this line?" Nanao pointed to a rather complicated line. She hadn't read ancient kido script in a while.

Lisa looked at the girl with surprise. "You can read it?"

Nanao nodded slightly. "There was a book I found in the academy library that had samples of this writing." Nanao knew that was true. Lisa had even showed her the book.

Lisa smiled at the little girl knowingly. "That book is in the restricted section. How did you find it?"

Nanao blushed deeply and dropped her head. "Accident?" Nanao looked up at Lisa sheepishly. She had forgotten that was where the book was. "Where did you find this book?" Nanao looked away so that Lisa wouldn't see the knowing smirk on her face.

Lisa chuckled a bit. "I snuck into the Taichou restricted section. Most Taichous don't even know it is missing. I doubt even the librarian knows. But this is our secret." Lisa put a finger to her lips as Nanao looked at her with surprise.

Nanao wasn't that surprised Lisa would tell her the truth. She was surprised at the volume she spoke at though. Nanao turned her attention back to the book. "What is this spell?"

Lisa pulled Nanao and the book closer to her. This was going to be enjoyable.

~several hours later~

"Lisa-chan!" Shunsui slid the door to Lisa's quarters open. He was met by a ball of water.

"Oops! Sorry Kyoraku-Taichou." Nanao wondered how reading kido from a book had turned into a game of catch with a ball of water.

Lisa laughed at her soaking wet superior. She had stood by the door just incase someone did come in. Then Lisa could catch it before it hit them, or let it hit them. "You should have knocked."

Shunsui eyed his Fukutaichou, she was smiling mischievously. "I was just wondering if you were still up for our evening walk. It's rather lovely tonight with the moonlight."

Lisa had forgotten she and Shunsui and planned to discuss ways of keeping the kido squad away from Nanao. "Stop being such a romantic."

"But it is such a romantic evening. It is warm out but still rather chilly. Perfect for cuddling." Shunsui tried to grab Lisa for a hug, but a rather thick book met his face. "That wasn't very nice, Lisa-chan."

"Wasn't teying to be nice." Lisa set the book down. She heard the sound of her patio door sliding open. She turned to find the door slightly open, and no Nanao in sight. "Nanao!" Lisa ran to the door and threw it open. She couldn't see her anywhere. "YOU IDIOT!" She yelled at Shunsui louder than was probably necessary.

"What did I do?" Shunsui was wondering what Lisa was talking about. Had he done something wrong?

"Haven't you realized why she has been avoiding you lately? She has a crush on you! And here you go being all romantic towards me with her in the same room! You probably broke her heart!" Lisa slid her san does on as she yelled at the man in her room. "Next time, THINK BEFORE YOU OPEN YOUR BIG MOUTH!"

"Where are you going?" Shunsui was a bit worried about Nanao, but she knew her way around, mostly.

"To look for Nanao." Lisa glared at Shunsui over her shoulder. "She may know her way around most of the compound, but she hasn't been down this way much. I made sure her barrack was far away from yours or mine. She doesn't need to know what we do at night." She took off running as she tried to find Nanao's reiatsu. She rolled her eyes as she felt Shunsui follow behind her.

~with Nanao~

'Do you even know where you are going?' Chibara didn't recognize any of the surrounding buildings.

'Yep. Shunsui's secret spot.' Nanao pushed a branch out of her way and stepped out into a small forest of sakura and peach trees. 'That was a secret short cut.'

Nanao walked through the forest till she can across the oldest looking tree. 'Its bigger than I remember it.'

'I'm sure your just smaller than it remembers you.' Nanao frowned as her zanpakutou laughed.

Nanao sighed as she use shunpo to jump to the niche she usually sat in. She was glad she could slid right into it. 'It is rather nice out. Comfortable air, but still at that temperature where cuddling would make it even better.' Nanao wrapped her arms around her legs as she rested her eyes against her knees. She felt the tears run down her cheeks and soak into her hakama.

"Nanao-sama." Nanao felt Chibara rub against her arm. She leaned back agains the tree as she pulled him into her lap. "Do not worry. Everything will work out in the end."

"I just don't know if I can do this anymore. It's only been three weeks. And already I'm crying." Nanao hugged him closely as tears continued down her cheek. "It's just so hard. I'm so close to him, but his heart is so far from me. Maybe I was just the rebound that he never left."

"You know that is not true. He loved you. And will love you again in the same way." Chibara purred as he nozzles her face to wipe her tears away.

Nanao giggled a bit. It always tickled when her cats did that. "This hurts as much as having Gaikotsu and Chishitoge taken. And I can't do anything about Aizen. He is a Fukutaichou and I am just a new shinigami."

"So what do you plan to do?" Chibara could see Nanao's eyes clear away her tears.

"Whatever I have to. Even if that means making a deal with the devil." Nanao scratched her cat behind his ears. She knew this wasn't going to be easy to plan. She had already scraped a dozen. "Maybe I should do as Shunsui did, make it up as I go."

"I'm sure that will frustrate Aizen very much." Nanao and Chibara smiled at the thought of frustrating the man. "Now which devil are you thinking of making. Deal with. You already made a deal with one long ago."

"That deal was necessary." Nanao hoped to never have to asks for the shopkeeper's help again. "And another may be necessary as well."

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	27. Cherry and Peach

I do not own Bleach.

* * *

Nanao sat back and watched as the moon rose higher into the night sky. Chibara had fallen asleep in her lap and was purring softly as she ran her fingers through his fur.

*creak*

Nanao and Chibara felt the tree move slightly. They both peered over the edge. All they saw was a sakura sown onto the top of a bamboo hat and a background of pink behind it. Nanao and Chibara stayed quiet as they peered through the sakura flowers.

"Any luck?" Shunsui tipped his hat up as he watched his long time friend walk towards him.

"No. You sure you can't feel her reiatsu?" Jushiro sat down beside his friend. The sakura garden was a usual hideaway for his friend.

"There isn't a trace of her. Her trail stopped just shortly after Lisa's patio." Shunsui leaned back against the tree with a sigh.

"Where else could she gave gone?" Jushiro asked himself mostly. He looked at Shunsui with a bit of worry. "Do you think Central 46 may have taken her again? Lisa has said she is almost as powerful as she was at the academy."

Shunsui closed his eyes as he calmed himself down. Just remembering what Central 46 had done to her was enough to get his blood boiling. "No one has said they have seen anything suspicious. A few even saw Nanao running around. But they don't know where she ran off to."

Both men sighed heavily. They were worried about the small child, one more than the other.

Nanao and Chibara backed away from the edge of the branch. Nanao felt he foot slip of a flower. 'Crap.' She reached out for something I catch herself with. She grabbed a branch, it snapped. "Aah!" Nanao couldn't help the squeak that escaped her lips. But it was more out of frustration that being scared.

She soon found herself in Shunsui's protective arms again. "Was my cute adorable Nanao-chan hiding in the sakuras this whole time?" Shunsui was relieved to have found her, and caught her. She had finally up clamped her reiatsu when she had screamed. A black cat landed on Nanao's lap and started rubbing against her face. "Who's the kitty?"

Nanao hugged Chibara tightly and hoped the moon stayed behind the clouds. He looked like a solid black cat. She pressed her face against his neck when he turned to look at Shunsui.

Shunsui frowned as the cat seemed to grin at him. "That is a little strange for a cat." Shunsui had to agree with Jushiro. It did not look natural at all. "And a bit creepy."

"I'm not that creepy." Chibara widened his grin as he spun his head upside down and back up on the other side.

"Chibara. Stop acting like Chishitoge. It's not as playful when you do it." Nanao scratched her cat's ear when he was finally done spinning his head. She caught the sad look in her cat's eyes when he looked at her. She hugged him and kissed his head as the moon reappeared from behind the clouds. "I miss him too."

Shunsui and Jushiro smiled as they figured out what the cat was. The purple strips gave him away. "Who is Chishitoge, Nanao-chan?" He smiled as the girl hugged her zanpakutou spirit.

Nanao pulled her face out of Chibara's fur and looked anywhere but Shunsui's face. "He is another piece of my zanpakutou."

Both men looked at each other with surprise. Jushiro was the first to speak. "You mean your zanpakutou appears as more than one?" Jushiro and Shunsui both had a bit of a smile on their face. They were a bit excited to have someone else that had a pair of zanpakutou,

"Yep. Is that bad?" Nanao was worried they would not like anyone else who impeded on their unique connection. But at the same time, she was in her own category all together.

Shunsui laughed at Nanao's shyness. "Not at all Nanao-chan. Juu-chan and myself have the same thing." He frowned a bit after wondering where her other zanpakutou was. "Is that what Central 46 did? Did they take Chishitoge from you?"

Nanao hurried her face in Chibara's fur again. "Yes." The memories of losing Chishitoge and Gaikotsu played through her mind again.

Jushiro had a frown equally as deep as his friend. Both knew how they would feel if they only had half of their zanpakutou. Jushiro knew Shunsui would know better. His own was sealed into a single katana. "Central 46 should be able to do that. Sensei would not allow them to do that."

Shunsui felt the same, but knew it was pointless. It was already done, so it couldn't be changed. At least not anytime soon.

"I have a deal with them." Both men tuned back into the little girl. Nanao wiped her tears again. "When I become a Fukutaichou, I can have Chishitoge back."

Shunsui couldn't help but smile at the little girl. "My cute Nanao-chan can duel wield?" Shunsui pushed himself off of the tree and began making his way back through the garden.

"Yep." Nanao smiled up at him. She giggled as Chibara rubbed himself against her neck.

"And how long has my adorable little Nanao-chan been able to manifest her zanpakutou spirit?" Shunsui was very surprised at how long the cat had been with them. Usually shinigami became very tired very quickly while their zanpakutou where manifested.

"I've always been able to make them appear. But most of the time they show up on their own." Nanao hugged Chibara as she stifled a yawn. It was getting late.

"I've never heard of zanpakutou that like to manifest themselves." Jushiro looked curiously at the cat. He was a bit worried when the cat slowly turned it's backwards and smiled at him.

"I've never met anyone like you. Coughing up blood for over 2000 years. And your still kicking." Chibara continued spinning his head till he faced Nanao's serious face. "What?"

Shunsui couldn't contain the chuckle that escaped his lips. "That number is a bit off, but close." He thought he heard Nanao say something under her breath while he caught his breath. And it sounded vaguely like his age. "Did you say something, my sweet lovely Nanao-chan?"

Nanao hid her face in Chibara's neck. "Nothing." Nanao was released they were leaving the garden. 'You should go before others see you.'

'But this is fun. I see why my brother does it.' Chibara looked up at Shunsui and smiled widely.

"Well that is a bit strange. Chibara here has one black and one purple eye." Shunsui was a bit confused when the cat blinked at the eye colours switched. "And he seems to like playing." Shunsui smiled as the cat switched the colours a few more times.

"I should get going. Good to see that you are safe, Nanao-san." Jushiro smiled as the little girl turned to him and smiled. He waved to her and his friend before heading off to his own squad.

"Is Chishitoge like his brother?" Shunsui was very happy. He had found someone that shared the same talent as him and Jushiro. Someone he could only help.

"Yeah. But he is purple with black stripes. And his eyes are red and black." Nanao yawned again as she snuggled closer to Shunsui. "He is also the talkative one. And he loves playing jokes on everyone." She closed her eyes and hugged Chibara as she felt herself get pulled into the world of sleep and dreams.

Shunsui smiled as he watche the small girl fall asleep in his arms. "He sounds like a playful kitten."

"He is." Nanao yawned again as she felt Chibara disappear back to her inner world. "You were right. Tonight is...perfect...for..." Nanao didn't finish her sentence. She was fast asleep with a small smile on her face.

Shunsui slid Nanao's key out of her pocket and unlocked the door to her quarters. He slid the door closed after he had let them in. He was surprised at how clean it was. He had never had his home or quarters as clean as this.

He made his way to her bedroom and was surprised to find a framed bed, like the ones that were in 4th, in her room. He gently laid her down and pulled her covers over her. He brushed her hair out of her face and kissed her forehead. "Sleep ell, Nanao-chan. I will help you get back Chishitoge, I promise."

He left her key on her entrance table after making sure her door locked as he left. He smiled all the way back to his house.

'With all of the promises you are making to her, you think you were planning on marrying her.' Shunsui paled at his zanpakutou's words. 'Dont worry. She is a child, and we know how you are about children. But what about-'

'None of that.' Shunsui spoke curtly. He rarely did to his zanpakutou. 'As you said, she is a child. Plus she will probably never see me as anything more than a father figure.'

'Lisa-chan seemed to think otherwise.' Katen Kyokotsu left it at that. She didn't like having her master angry at her. Only she was allowed to be angry at him, the other way was much scarier, for everyone.

Shunsui sighed as he looked back up at the moon. "Full moon, anything can happen." He continued down the winding halls. His mind still lost in thoughts, but not thinking much.

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	28. Fate

I do not own Bleach.

* * *

Several months had passed since then. Nanao still met up with Shunsui every now and then for lunch or dinner. And she spent the first of every month reading the sorcery kido book with Lisa. But most of Nanao's time was spent researching about Aizen and hanging out with Gin. She didn't want her only academy friend to eventually end up dead. And she was glad Aizen hadn't killed him yet.

Nanao was finding herself spending more and more time in the sakura tree garden. She would mostly just sit and stare at the moon. Sometimes Shunsui would join her or already be there. And he would always just sit with her.

Tonight was one night where he decided not to join her.

'It's calm tonight.' Nanao sat on her branch as she looked at the night sky. The sky was clear and the moon was full. 'Full moon, anything can happen.'

" ATTENTION ALL SHINIGAMI. ATTENTION ALL SHINIGAMI." Nanao was already heading back towards the main building as the alarm continued. "IMMEDIATE TAICHOU MEETING IN 1ST. REPEAT. IMMEDIATE TAICHOU MEETING IN 1ST. THE REIATSU OF MUGURUMA-TAICHOU AND KUNA-FUKUTAICHOU HAVE BEEN LOST. REPEAT. THE REIATSU OF MUGURUMA-TAICHOU AND KUNA-FUKUTAICHOU HAVE BEEN LOST."

Nanao landed outside of the office building doors as Lisa snuck out of them. "Where are you going, Yadomaru-senpai?"

Lisa nearly jumped at the small girl's question. She hadn't heard her approach. "I think you can take a break from going to your hoho training. Soon you'll be sneaking up on Shihoin-Taichou." Lisa ruffled Nanao's hair as she walked passed the girl. She stopped for a minute and looked back at her. "Do you want to come?"

Nanao smiled and nodded. She easily kept up with her mentor as they made their way to 1st squad compound. They leaned against the wall below a window.

"I request to be sent!" Nanao's eyes widened at the voice. It sounded like Urahara.

'Wait. Is this...that night? The night Lisa never came back?" Nanao looked up at her mentor. Lisa was frowning as the conversation above them continued.

"Can I send Lisa-chan instead?" Nanao resumed listening when she heard Shunsui speak. "As her superior I would like her to get the experience. And she is tough, she can handle it."

Nanao caught Lisa's eyes, they exchanged a smile. It was rare for Shunsui to say any woman was strong enough to be sent in his place, in any way.

"Lisa-chan!" Lisa winked at Nanao as she jumped up and pulled her face up into the view of the window.

'So he knew she was here. Wonder if he knows m here too?' Nanao soon found herself being picked up and carried away. "Are you going on a mission?"

"Yes." Lisa set Nanao down at the gate and handed her the book she had been carrying. "Hold onto this for me."

"I will. Then we can read it together when you get back." Nanao smiled as she held onto the book. "When will you be back?"

"The morning. No later." Lisa smiled down at the girl fondly. She was going to enjoy watching the girl grow up.

"Promise?" Nanao wanted to delay her as much as possible.

"I promise." Lisa knew what the girl was doing. She had a bit of time. "Take care of the idiot Taichou while I'm gone."

"I will. I promise." Nanao smiled as she hoped Lisa would keep her promise.

"Good. I'm off." Lisa waved as she headed towards the fast moving group that was the rest of her team.

Nanao stood there and watched for a while. She didn't even know how much time had past.

"Still up, Nanao-chan?" Nanao looked towards the figure walking towards her. Shunsui smiled at the small girl. "Lisa-chan's bad influence." He raised an eyebrow as his smile changed to a knowing smirk. He had easily noticed nano's playful reiatsu. It always seemed to seek him out, but stay hidden from everyone else lately.

Nanao looked down at the book in her hands. 'Caught red handed.' She started fiddling with the ground at her feet. "It's the first of the month."

"Oh right. Tonight is when you usually read with Lisa-chan." Shunsui wondered how his usually brash Fukutaichou turned into such a loving person when the girl was around. "Sorry. I sent her on a mission."

"It's okay." Nanao didn't want to openly say that she had spied on the meeting with Lisa. Despite that she didn't even know that was where Lisa was leading her. "Would you...read with me?" Nanao looked at Shunsui curiously. She knew what was coming in the morning. She wanted to comfort him as much as possible.

Shunsui gave the girl a sad smile. "Sorry Nanao-chan. Not tonight. B don't worry. I'm sure she will be back in the morning."he patted her head before continuing down the road. He was in the mood for a walk.

Nanao walked into 8th squad compound and towards her quarters. 'Why don't you go stop her?' Nanao heard Chibara question as she made her way through the halls to her door. 'Aizen may not notice that you are there. And then you can kill him.'

'But then how will Lisa-chan and the others come out of hiding? If this goes as it should, then we should be able to stop Aizen and allow the Vaisards to come back.' Nanao spoke calmly to her zanpakutou. She closed her door behind her and left her key on her entrance table.

"Good evening, Ise-san." Nanao spun around and had a kido on her hand. But no one was behind her. "Good night." She felt a pressure on her neck before she fell into a world of black and nothing.

"Did ya need ta be so rough?" Gin looked down at the helpless body of his friend. He was worried, but he didn't let it show on his face. He couldn't let it show.

"She is more resilient than she looks." Aizen smirked down at the little girl lying on the floor at his feet. 'My win.'

"So, what we gonna do with her?" Gin hoped nothing bad. He had nothing against his friend. If anything he wanted to keep her safe. But no one was safe when Aizen set his eyes on them. Gin knew that very well.

Aizen let a cruel smile spread across his lips. "Let's let her watch, but not from here." He picked up the small body as he walked past her. "Come, Gin. We have a full evening."

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It's been a while since I have done an ending like that. I missed them a bit. Please leave a comment.


	29. Moving On

I do not own Bleach.

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*BANG*

Nanao sat bolt upright. She looked around the dimly lit room as she tried to find the source of the sound. The slight pounding in her head wasn't helping.

*BANG*

Nanao looked behind her. It was coming from the door. But where was she? She stood and looked around at the piles of things on the floor. Where the piles...moving?

*BANG*

Nanao took a step back, but her foot snagged on something and she fell. She looked at what she fell over. The pile wasn't tall, but it was long. In the dim light she could make out something. A white mask.

She held back from screaming in surprise. She looked closely at the mask. It was diamond shaped and had a single slit going down the middle and across. "Lisa-chan." Nanao breathed softly.

*BANG*

Nanao looked towards the door as the room brightened a bit more. She quickly backed up against the wall and cast a concealment kido. Hopefully they wouldn't find her.

*BANG*

The door crashed in and several shinigami folded into the room. Most stopped once they saw the Viasards scattered across the room. Many whispered as they moved farther into the room.

Nanao caught sight of a flash of black and purple. Then all of the shinigami fell to the floor. Nanao walked away from the wall. "Shihoin-Taichou."

Yorichi looked towards the small girl curiously. "Nanao? What are you doing here?" She quickly began gathering the shinigami with hollow masks on. Did you go out n that mission as well?"

"No. Aizen just dropped me off here. I guess he was hoping they would just bundle me in with all of them." Nanao lifted Lisa over her shoulder. If she was her regular size she could have carried someone else, but she wasn't.

Yorichi nodded at the girls response. "Hand me Lisa. You take that casket."

Nanao handed Lisa over to the woman and picked up the black casket. It didn't feel too heavy.

Yorichi nodded when Nanao had the casket in hand. It was much bigger than the girl, but she seemed to be able to carry it. "Keep up."

Nanao stayed right behind Yorichi the entire trip. She was surprised to find such a large area under the Sokyoku hill.

Yorichi pulled a mask over her face and tucked her hair in. "You stay here. Or head back to your quarters."

"Can I come with you?" Nanao noticed the surprise on Yorichi's face. "There is something I need to get back from Central 46."

Yorichi didn't question the girl. She just hand her a spare mask she had. "Come back here after you are done."

Nanao nodded as she put the mask on. She followed Yorichi as they both headed for Central 46.

Once they infiltrated Nanao broke off and headed towards the zanpakutou vault. Nanao was glad she had researched the layout of the building. The maze of hallways would have taken her hours to navigate. She found the vault in a minute. Was inside in under ten seconds.

Nanao was surprised at the small quantity of zanpakutou in the vault. She would have thought there would have been more. She smiled as she caught sight of the only two that stood together. She read the plaque, 'Ise Nanao', and grabbed the katana that laid on the bottom of the holder. 'Sorry Chishitoge, but you have to stay here. I'm going to need you soon. And I'm going to get you soon.'

She quickly left as she heard the alarm being raised. She avoided the patrols and knocked out the ones she couldn't. She was soon out of Central 46 and weaving her way back to the Sokyoku hill.

She landed softly inside the training ground after making sure she wasn't followed. She walked towards the group that was assembled.

"So you made it out. I was a bit worried there." Yorichi smiled as the girl approached them with a katana in hand. "Is that what you wanted to get back? A katana?"

"My zanpakutou. They took it from me the night I won the tournament back at the academy." Nanao pulled her mask down below her chin.

"Why is she here?" Yorichi and Nanao looked towards the blond haired man. Nanao had to admit, he looked weird without his hat. "They only charged me with experimenting on Taichous and Fukutaichous. They said nothing about unseated officers." Urahara eyed the little girl suspiciously.

"Relax Kisuke. I found her in lab, but she said Aizen put her there." Yorichi began helping Tessai.

"Oh." Urahara looked at the small girl curiously. Why did Aizen leave her in his lab with the others?

"Urahara-Taichou? Can I asks you a favour?" Nanao looked towards the man she knew could be as dangerous as Aizen, if he chose to be. "Can you hold onto Gaikotsu for me?"

"Your katana? Why?" Kisuke didn't understand why she would want to part with her zanpakutou, no shinigami would do that. "Wouldn't it be better to have him with you?"

It would be a liability if it was found. And I can't unseal him to hide him because that would also give away that I broke into Central 46. It is better if you have him." Nanao held Gaikotsu out for Urahara to take. "Aizen also doesn't know that I have him."

Urahara nodded and took the stone covered zanpakutou from the girl. "Anything else?"

"Keep an eye on Naruki city. Aizen may conduct experiments there." Nanao looked him in the eye as she looked at his with a serious face. "I will try to stop Aizen on this end. And keep an eye out for someone by the name of Kurosaki. They will be important."

"How do you know his?" Urahara was skeptical, but he could see the truth of her words in her eyes.

"No time to explain. We have to go." Yorichi put a hand on Kisuke's shoulder. "Good luck, Nanao-chan."

"Good luck to you as well." Nanao turned and began walking away.

But she soon felt a pressure on the back of her neck again. "Sorry, Ise-san."

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	30. Fairwell

I do not own Bleach.  
The song is: I'm Coming Home, by Skylar Grey

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Nanao opened her eyes gently. It seemed to still be predawn. And she was back in her room. How she got there, she didn't know. She consigned to just put her head back down and sleep more, but noise from the hall stopped her.

"Have either of you seen Ise-chan?" Nanao couldn't place the woman's with a name.

"No. Have you checked her room?" Nanao sat up quietly and listened carefully.

"Several times. And her keys were on her front table. Taichou is so worried about her." The first female voice sounded frantic.

"Has he been told about Yadomaru-Fukutaichou?" Nanao was about to head for the door.

'Nanao. It may not be best to just suddenly appear in your quarters.' Nanao understood how suspicious that looked. 'They haven't checked the sakura tree garden yet. Go there.'

Nanao walked to her bedroom window. She silently slid it open and jumped out. She quickly and quietly made her way to the garden. She climbed up her favourite tree and slid into the small hollow.

'There. See you soon?' Nanao pulled he half mask off of her face and burned it with a kido. It left no trace of the mask in her hand.

'On our way.' Nanao smiled and waited for her zanpakutou to come meet her.

She blinked as the sun fully peaked out from behind the buildings. She smiled as she soaked it the warm heat. She let her tears fall as she let the events of the precious night sink in. Lisa was gone, again.

"See you soon, Lisa." Nanao pulled her locket out from inside her robes. She traced the swirl design as it went around the silver heart.

She began to him softly, but not the song the locket held. It was a song Lisa had told her about.

And the blood will dry  
Underneath my nails  
And the wind will rise up  
To fill my sails

So you can doubt  
And you can hate  
But I know, no matter what it takes

I'm coming home  
I'm coming home  
Tell the world I'm coming home  
Let the rain wash away, all the pain of yesterday  
I know my kingdom awaits and they've forgiven my mistakes  
I'm coming home  
I'm coming home  
Tell the world I'm coming...

Still far away  
From where I belong  
But it's always darkest  
Before the dawn

So you can doubt  
And you can hate  
But I know, no matter what it takes

I'm coming home  
I'm coming home  
Tell the world I'm coming home  
Let the rain wash away, all the pain of yesterday  
I know my kingdom awaits and they've forgiven my mistakes  
I'm coming home  
I'm coming home  
Tell the world I'm coming...

I'm coming home  
I'm coming home  
Tell the world I'm coming home  
Let the rain wash away, all the pain of yesterday  
I know my kingdom awaits and they've forgiven my mistakes  
I'm coming home  
I'm coming home  
Tell the world I'm coming...home

Nanao wiped away her tears. She sat on the edge of the branch as she continued to watch the sun rise.

"Nanao-chan has a beautiful singing voice." Nanao was surprised by Shunsui's voice.

She looked back to see where he was. She lost her balance. "Eep!" She fell backwards and right into Shunsui's arms. "Please don't so that Taichou."

Shunsui smiled as the girl clung to his arms. "Sorry, Nanao-chan. Have you been here since last night?"

Nanao managed to calm her breathing. "Is that a bad thing?"

"It is when I can't find you." Shunsui dropped the joking tone in his voice. He had been very worried for the past several hours. "You shouldn't keep your reiatsu locked up so much. That way I can find you if something happens."

Nanao knew how rare it was for Shunsui to use his serious tone. "I'm sorry, Kyoraku-Taichou."

"Yare, yare, I'm not mad mad Nanao-chan. Just concerned." Shunsui smiled as the black cat crawled down from his shoulder and into the girl's lap. "Next time keep your zanpakutou with you. He was worried the most."

Nanao hugged Chibara tightly. 'Thank you for getting him.'

'Wasn't gonna let Aizen get away with taking you. We didn't run into him at all. But it seems like he still got away with whatever he did.' Chibara rubbed against Nanao's face to wipe her still wet cheeks.

Nanao giggled as Chibara wiped her tears away.

Shunsui smiled as he began making his way back to the barracks. "Tired from staying up all night, Nanao-chan?"

Nanao yawned and rubbed her eyes. "A bit, but I was waiting for Yadomaru-senpai *yawn* to keep...her...promise." Nanao didn't realize how tired she was. 'Maybe I will sleep in more. Darn you Shunsui for rubbing your laziness off on me.'

Shunsui's smile slipped off of his face. He had gotten a hell butterfly at dawn. It had hurt him severely to listen to it, but he knew Nanao would hurt more form it. So for now he would let her sleep. And dream happily.

"I'm sorry Nanao-chan. But it looks like Lisa-chan...won't be coming back." Shunsui whispered softly as walked through the hallways towards Nanao's quarters. He noticed a single tear roll down her cheek, as if she had heard him. But he could tell she was fast asleep. 'Looks like she already knows something is wrong.'

'Children tend to notice that easily.' Shunsui was surprised by the tenderness is Katen Kyokotsu's voice. 'We can be sympathetic when we want to be.'

Shunsui's lips were pulled up for a brief moment, but it didn't last long. "You always told me I'd have to do some work eventually. Never thought it would when you weren't around to say 'I told you so'. Ne, Lisa-chan?"

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Please leave a comment. Sorry for the short chapter.


	31. Back to Work

I do not own Bleach.

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Nanao woke up at her usual time with her alarm. She went about her usual morning routine. Only realizing that something was off when she found no one in the office.

'Everyone is taking Lisa's disappearance terribly.' Nanao walked to her desk and found a note on it. 'He gave everyone the day off. Which means...' Nanao turned to his office doors. She could smell the sake already. 'I might start hating the stuff again.'

She slid the door open enough to slip inside. She closed the door as silently as she could. The room was pitch black and deathly silent.

'Chibara, I need your eye.' Nanao closed her left eye. She opened it and waited as the room revealed itself to her.

She made her way around the multitude of bottles that were scattered across the floor. She made her way to the window.

'You sure you want to do it this way?' Chibara questioned as his master as she cast a dimming kido on the large window. 'He isn't a happy person when he is woken up drunk.'

'I know.' Nanao sighed as she turned and leaned against the wall beside the window. 'But this will work best.' She pulled the string and lifted the curtains quickly. She could see him flinch a bit with Chibara's eye. Then relax as no light hit his face.

'You can be so cruel sometimes.' Chibara tensed a bit as Nanao began to lighten the dimming on the window.

Nanao released Chibara's eye as the room began to light up. When it was about equal to predawn light, she stopped.

"Turn the light out." Nanao didn't even flinch at the harshness in his words. "Turn out the stupid light." Shunsui reached up to pull his hat down his face, but it wasn't there. So he just threw his arm over his face.

"Sorry sir, but no." Nanao crossed her arms and frowned at Shunsui from where she was. She saw him reach for his sakkat. And saw his sakkat laying on the floor by his head.

Shunsui was a bit confused to hear Nanao in his office. "Nanao-chan should be asleep. She had a late night."

"So did you, sir. And I don't think drinking away your depression is helping you." Nanao picked up Shunsui's sakkat and dropped it on his face. She had learned how best to deal with Shunsui and his drinking habits. She already dealt with him during his depression over Lisa's disappearance. So this time wasn't going to be any more difficult. "You have a squad to run. Even if you give everyone the day off. Besides, don't you think we should do something for Yadomaru-senpai?"

"Later, when everyone has had time to mourn on their own." Shunsui pulled his sakkat further down his face to cover his frown. "And little Nanao-chan doesn't have to worry about me. I am a grown man."

"I thought you said you were a child." Nanao frowned as Shunsui began to ignore her. She knew he wasn't sleeping, he was just waiting for her to leave before drinking again.

She sighed as she began to collect sake bottles. Most were empty and she just put them into a large bag. The few that still had some content in them were placed beside the Fukutaichou desk. It took her about an hour to clean up the office. It still smelled heavily of sake, but at least it looked clean.

Nanao looked over towards the couch. Shunsui hadn't moved an inch from when he stopped speaking. She sighed as she made her way to Lisa's desk...the Fukutaichou desk and climbd up the chair. She found a small stack of papers and looked through it. She smiled as none of them needed Shunsui's signature. Nanao began filling out the paperwork. Smiling as she remembered how to fill them out.

"What is Nanao-chan doing?" Shunsui had expected her to leave once he began ignoring her. But she hadn't left the office.

"Paperwork, Taichou." Nanao didn't even look up from the sheet she was working on. "That way you don't have as much paperwork do while you are drunk." Nanao paused as she placed another sheet on the pile of completed work. "Yadomaru-senpai showed me how to do it. She said you weren't one to do paperwork. And she asked me to help her so you wouldn't be a grumpy child all day."

"Nanao-chan is too young to be worrying about an old soul like me." Shunsui smiled a bit while he remembered that day.

~flashback~

Shunsui sat at his desk with a frown on his face. He spun his clean brush around his thumb as he stared at the paper on his desk. A warm breeze from the open window caressed his face and brought a smile to his face.

"The faster you finish those, the faster you can go outside." Shunsui looked over to his Fukutaichou. Lisa didn't even bother to look up from her paperwork. She knew he wasn't happy. He rarely was when he was working.

"But it is too beautiful outside to stay in and work." Shunsui pushed away the papers and laid his head on the cool wood of the desk. "Today should be spent outside. Lounging under a tree with Nanao-chan braiding flowers into my hair–"

"No." Shunsui looked over to the open door. Nanao slid the door closed behind her. She walked over to Lisa's desk and placed a stack of paper on it. "I finished the stack you gave me. Anything else you would like help with?"

Lisa smirked and turned her gaze towards Shunsui. Shunsui didn't know what to think of the look. He got a bit more worried when she made his way to his desk.

"Let's see." Lisa picked up the pile of papers from Shunsui's desk. She leafed through them and placed a few back on his desk. When she had gotten through the pile there were six sheets on Shunsui's desk. "You can do those. Nanao-chan and myself will cover the rest."

"But Nanao-chan is a child. She should be out playing and singing in the trees with the birds, not doing paperwork." Shunsui frowned at the papers that where still on his desk.

"Then maybe you should have just done your work instead of complaining about it." Lisa sat down at her desk and began leafing through her own paperwork. She got down to half of the pile she had. She passed one half to Nanao. "See what you can get through, and I can help you with the ones you can't."

Nanao looked at the quarter inch thick stack she had in her hands. This was nothing compared to what she normally did. "Okay. Can I do them in here so I don't have to keep coming and going?"

Lisa smirked as she pulled out a couple brushes and an ink well. "Sure. Just make sure Taichou doesn't distract you." Lisa added an old fan she sloe had in her drawer to the little girl. "I give you permission to whack him with this if he does."

"Since when could you do that?" Shunsui raised an eyebrow as questioned his Fukutaichou. He had finally decided to finish the dreaded paperwork. The quicker he was done, the quicker he could rescue Nanao from her work.

"Since could I not?" Lisa kept her eyes on her paperwork. She only stole a few glances up to see how Nanao was doing. The little girl had set herself up with the coffee table as her desk. She seemed to be doing pretty well.

The three worked in silence for about ten minutes. Shunsui was the first to break the silence. "Done! Going out to play with Nanao-chan!" He dropped the papers on Lisa's desk and went over to collect Nanao.

Nanao easily avoided his arms and walked over to Lisa's desk with her stack of papers. "How do you fill out this part?" Nanao knew exactly how to fill out the food order form, but she needed an excuse to avoid Shunsui for a bit longer.

Lisa looked over the form. It was filled out perfectly. Lisa raised a eyebrow at the girl. "You just have to add the totals. And I see you balanced it out by dropping the amount of sake the squad ordered. Good choice." Lisa smiled as she handed the form back to the little girl.

"Why does it have to be the sake?" Shunsui pouted at the two girls. He knew they were conspiring against him.

"Because it kills brain cells and reduces anyone to the level of an incoherent monkey." Lisa and Shunsui looked at the small girl that spoke with a completely straight face. The two couldn't keep theirs. Nanao rolled her eyes as Lisa and Shunsui laughed at her seriousness.

"Taichou...hahahahaha...I think...I think she just...just called you...hahaha...a monkey...hahahahaha!" Lisa was clutching her sides. It was mostly the seriousness that Nanao had spoken in, but the implied statement pushed her over.

The rest of that afternoon was spent laughing and enjoying the afternoon. Mostly in the office, but Shunsui thought it was a good day.  
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"Taichou?" Shunsui focused on the little girl looking at him curiously from Lisa's desk. "You okay? Do you need me to go get Unahana-Taichou?" Nanao was a bit worried. He seemed far away for a little while.

"That isn't necessary, sweet Nanao-chan. I'm not that drunk." He reached down beside him for a sake bottle. But he couldn't feel one. "Nanao-chan? Where did my sake go?" He had a mostly light hearted voice, but he still sounded serious.

"It was empty, so I threw it out." Nanao kept the fact that she had half full bottles behind the desk a secret. No point in letting him get to the point where he needed to go to 4th.

Shunsui grumbled as he pulld his sakkat down and slumped further into the couch.

"I can always lighten the room more if you want to go find another bottle." Nanao knew he wouldn't go for that. He was drunk enough that the light annoyed him and he was too lazy to even get up off the couch.

Shunsui just grumbled as slid down so his head was off the arm of the couch. It was more comfortable for him to sleep on the couch that way. He closed his eyes as he wished to wake up from the nightmare he had found himself in.

Nanao sighed as she squared away the stack of papers that Shunsui had to fill out himself. She set those down on his desk after filling all of the other papers for pickup in the morning. She walked past Shunsui and heard the soft snore that told her he was just starting to fall asleep.

'This is hard to watch a second time.' Nanao dimmed the light in the room to near darkness. She crept up to him and pulled his sakkat to the side of his head to he could breath fresh air as he slept. She bit her lip as she contemplated her next action.

'Just do it. I know you want to.' Chibara found himself giddy to see if his master old to through with the thought in her head.

'Why not.' She pressed her lips gently to his forehead. "Goodnight Taichou. Sweet dreams." She whispered softly as she backed away. She saw a smile spread across his lips as she turned towards the door. She left the office as quietly as she had gone in.

"Good after noon, Ise-san." Nanao aimed a glare at Aizen. "It's good to see you are coping well with the loss of your mentor." Aizen smiled at the girl who had managed to avoid his plan to be rid of her once more. He was starting to get annoyed with her.

"It's good to see how well you are handling the loss of your Taichou." Nanao kept her voice light. She didn't want to sound too hostile. "I'm sure you will have lots of other squads looking after you till you gat another."

"Yes, but which me will be there with them?" He whispered softly as he walked past the small girl. "The one they see, or the true one?"

Nanao watched as Aizen faded away while walking out the door. She let a small growl pass her lips as she made her way to her desk. She pulled out a schedule and checked through to see when Shunsui or Lisa taught a class that week.

'You going to cover for them?' Chibara could understand the kido, hoho, and hakuda classes, but the zanjutsu classes?

'I can find someone to sub the class until Shunsui gets over his depression. Hopefully with Jushiro's help, it will only last a month as apposed to several years.' Nanao squared away her desk and folded up the training schedule.

"Excuse me?" Nanao turned to see someone with an armful of paper walk into the office building. "I have today's paperwork. Sorry it is so late. This morning at 1st was hectic. Where is Kyoraku-Taichou's office?"

"He is indisposed at the moment. By you can leave the, on my desk. I will take care of them." Nanao sighed as the shinigami walked towards her.

"Sorry, but this is to be distributed by the Taichou or Fukutaichou of the squad." The shinigami doubted the little girl before him could be anything but an unseated officer. She was just a child after all.

"As I told you, Kyoraku-Taichou isn't available at the moment. And 8th squad no longer has a Fukutaichou. I am the 3rd seated officer. You can leave them with me." Nanao folded her arms and gave the shinigami a stern look. She knew she had a long way to go till she had any level of respect from anyone.

The man was a bit shocked at the look he got from the little girl. She seemd to demand respect, but not force it out of people. He gave her a nod as he set the paperwork down on her desk. "Is yesterday's paperwork ready for pickup?"

"Sorry, it is currently in the office and I do not have the key to it. I will drop it off personally, tomorrow morning before the work day starts." Nanao gave the man a small bow, telling him the conversation was over and he could leave.

Nanao turned to the stack of papers on her desk once the shinigami began to leave. 'Looks like your work day isn't over yet.' Chibara and Nanao both sighed. Neither liked paperwork. The cat because Nanao was destructed from him. The girl because she knew once it started, it never ended.

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	32. 80 Years Later

I do not own Bleach.

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~80 years later~

Nanao was running through the halls of the office building trying to find her Taichou. She had already tried his house and office, but she had no luck. She had also tried 13th squad and Ukitake's house, Ukitake had been feeling I'll for the for the past few days, but no luck there either.

She stopped when she passed by their fifth seated officer. "Enjoji-san? Have you seen Kyoraku-Taichou?"

Enjoji looked at the shinigami infront of him. Nanao had grow up quite a bit. She now looked to be about 18 human years. "So are you chasing him down now? A few years ago it was the other way around." Enjoji knew that Nanao had recently begun hounding their Taichou about doing paperwork. "Try his secret getaway."

"Right. How did I miss that? Thank you Enjoji-san." Nanao ran off towards the sakura tree garden. She stepped into shunpo once she was outside.

She stepped down in front of the center most tree. She wasn't that surprised to find her Taichou leaning against the tree with a bottle of sake in his hand. "I should just start here every time I need to find you."

"Morning Nanao-chan. You look lovely today. Would you like to share a drink while we enjoy the blooming blossoms together? " Shunsui smiled happily at Nanao. "Why don't you let your hair down? It was so cute to see your hair down when you were little. And we both know you don't need the glasses. The hair clips fit you better."

"My appearance is none of your concern, Taichou. And it is already afternoon. And I do not drink while I am working." Nanao leafed through the papers in her hand. She reorganized them so that the most important paperwork was on top.

"But you aren't working right now. You're chatting with me." Shunsui saw the papers in her hand. He started thinking of ways to avoid having to do paperwork.

Nanao let out a deep sigh before holding out the papers to him. "There isn't much. The top two forms are most important."

"What are they for?" Shunsui frowned curiously as he read throat the paper. Nanao usually didn't tell him the importance of the papers. She usually just told him to sign them.

"It's to approve me as acting Fukutaichou. That way I can start on some of the backlog that is building up in your office." Nanao knew he wouldn't like her answer. But she didn't like to tell lies, but she was getting more used to telling half truths.

"That isn't necessary." Shunsui put the pen and sheets down and sat back against the tree.

"Yes it is! Besides it only gives me authority to work on secure paperwork. Not missions. I thought that would make it reasonable for you!" Nanao glared at him. Even with his sakkat covering his eyes, she knew he was meeting her gaze.

"I'll eventually get to the papers. They aren't going anywhere." Shunsui set down his sake bottle. He knew he was in for an argument. And the sake would only give her another point to rant at him.

He didn't like fighting. But getting yelled at was almost as bad. He didn't mind it when it was Nanao yelling at him. He mostly forgot her words and just listened to her voice. Unless she was glaring at him, like right now.

"I know that isn't true. You have never liked paperwork." Nanao sighed as she tried to calm down. She knew why he was against getting another Fukutaichou. "Look, I know losing Yadomaru-senpai was painful. It was painful for me as well. But you can't let one event dictate the rest of your life. You can't survive like this and the squad is barely getting by. So let me help."

Shunsui sighed heavily. "I don't need a Fukutaichou."

"Why don't you WANT a Fukutaichou?" Nanao knew she was hitting a sensitive nerve. He had always felt guilty about what happened to Lisa.

Shunsui said nothing as he reached for his sake bottle. But it wasn't there. He looked over to the flash of black that sat by Nanao's legs. Shunsui raised a eyebrow before he realized it was Chibara.

"As I said. Makes people as unintelligent as monkeys." Nanao bent down and picked up the sake bottle.

"Give it back Nanao." Shunsui leaned up against the tree. Today wasn't a day he wanted to be sober on.

"Not until I get an answer. Why don't you want a Fukutaichou?" Nano crossed her arms and leaned onto one foot.

"I don't have to answer. I am a Taichou and you are my 3rd seated officer. Now give me back my sake." Shunsui held his hand out for his bottle.

Nanao raised an eyebrow at him. "Did you really just pull rank into this? Because if you are then I can pull the same thing and say it is your duty to fill out that paperwork and run your squad. Your 3rd seated officer shouldn't have to worry about whether or not the squad was going to be disbanded!" Nanao was glad Jushiro had offered to help her practise how to argue with Shunsui. It could be difficult when he actually wanted to win an argument.

Shunsui looked down at the ground. "Nanao-chan shouldn't have to worry about that. Least of all an old drunk like me."

"Yes I do. I promised Yadomaru-senpai I would look after you while she was gone." Nanao smiled when Shunsui's surprised gaze met her eyes. "Are you scared anyone that you a point to be your Fukutaichou will disappear as well?"

Shunsui pulled his gaze away from her eyes again. It was an unspoken rule between the two. That Lisa was just missing, not dead like everyone else believed. "Anything can happen to anyone." His eyes darted to a moving black object. It fluttered towards Nanao and landed lightly on her finger. "Message from 1st?"

"Yes. You have a meeting to get to." Nanao smiled as Shunsui sighed and got up from his longing spot. "I won't follow this time."

"What?" Shunsui was stunned Nanao would say something like that. It sounded like something Lisa would say. 'Did Lisa teach Nanao a bad habit of her's?'

Nano giggled a bit and winked at him. "I'll tell you after your meeting." She caught sight of his smile as he left. He was going to hold her to her words.

"You are doing quite well, Ise-san." Nanao turned to Aizen. She gave him a hard glare. "Careful how you act now. I am a Taichou after all."

"You should go to the meeting, Aizen-Taichou. Who knows what could have happened while you were out and about." Nanao knew a bit of what he was up to. That was why she had been exchanging information with Gin every time he went out drinking with Rangiku.

"I don't think that is necessary. You and I both know what the meeting is about. But I was very surprised to find that I was unable to do anything but observe." Aizen smiled at Nanao. "You wouldn't happen to know anything about that now, would you?"

"Of course not. I've been to busy doing research. Did you know there have bee other incidents where shinigami have gone missing without explanations. Yet, none of those were ever investigated." Nanao bent down to retrace the papers that Shunsui had left beside the sakura tree.

Aizen gave the girl a smirk. He hadn't bee able to get rid of her, yet. "It would be truly scary if you were to ever get any evidence against me. I certainly wouldn't stand a chance."

"It's only a matter of time before you slip up." Nanao had tried to pin the past few assassination attempts on him, but with no luck.

"Do what you will, but I will not fail. Kurosaki Ichigo will never exist." Aizen turned and began walking out of the garden.

"Well see about that, Aizen." Nanao whispered to herself. She brought Shunsui,s sake jug to her lips and took a drink.

'What happened to no drinking while working?' Chibara had retreated back to her inner world after he had gotten the sake bottle away from Shunsui.

'That was before Aizen showed up and ruined my day. I need to talk to Urahara. And maybe a holiday as well.' Nanao took another drink as she made her way back to the office. The office with all of the dreaded backlog paperwork. And Shunsui's hidden stashes of sake.

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	33. Holiday Plans

I do not own Bleach.

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Shunsui walked back to the office with a smile on his face. The meeting wasn't as long as he had thought it would be. And now he got to spend time with his Nanao-chan. He greeted the secretaries with a top of his hat and a smile. He walked into the office and shut the door behind him.

When Shunsui scanned the room for Nanao, he found her where he didn't expect to find her, on the couch. "Is my lovely Nanao-chan tired?" He spotted the sake bottle in her hand. He moved closer and saw another on the ground by the couch. "Are you okay?"

He was worried now. From what he knew, Nanao didn't drink. He never saw her at bars. And Rangiku said when she went with her, Nanao would just order water. And now she had drunk at least two bottles of sake. He was worried out of his mind.

"Nope." Nanao shook the bottle that was in her hand, empty. She placed it on the ground and sighed. "Everything is terrible."

Shunsui moved the sake bottles away. He thought he caught sight of a bottle under the couch, but that may have been his. "Tell me what is wrong, my sweet lovely Nanao-chan."

Nanao looked over towards Shunsui with a tired look. "I need a break. A long relaxing break with no paperwork. I don't even want to think about the paperwork that still needs to be done." She waved her had towards the piles on Shunsui's desk and behind the couch. She then laid her arm over her eyes.

Shunsui looked at the monster of paperwork that waited to kill any chance of him ever seeing daylight again, he shuttered. "You have been working very hard. I'm surprised you are just now asking for a holiday. I have already taken several." Shunsui gave her a playful smile.

Nanao matched his smile with an unimpressed look. "That's because you were acting like a depressed baby."

"I was not!" Shunsui defended.

"You spent three years worth of exercise budget on sake in two months! I had to keep you from drinking yourself to death!" Nanao had sat up and was now yelling at him. She saw a bit of hurt run through Shunsui's eyes. She took a deep breath before lying down again. "I need a break."

Shunsui put a small smile back on his face. He didn't want his mind to wander back to dark places. "What kind of break would you like?"

"I still have the spa trip I won from back in my academy days. Maybe I should cash that in." Nanao closed her eyes a bit as she felt the alcohol start to take effect. She had made sure to hide her first two bottles very well.

"Isn't that for two people?" Shunsui raised an eyebrow. She didn't have that many friends. Even though she was relatively well known around Seireitei.

"You can come if you want. It would be nice." Nanao was too focused on sleep to worry about what she was saying. She was sure her brain wouldn't say anything stupid.

Shunsui's grin widened. "I'll see what Yamaji says."

"Thank you." Nanao yawned as she grabbed a couch pillow and laid her head on it.

"Anything for my lovely Nanao-chan." Shunsui laid his kimono on top of her before walking to the door. "Sleep off the sake. Three bottles is quite a lot for a light weight."

"I'm not a lightweight. And I am not drunk. A bit tipsy maybe, but not drunk. It takes more than that to make me drunk." Nanao curled up under the warm silk.

Shunsui chuckled a bit. "Then maybe we will have to see how much it takes sometime."

"Not happening anytime soon. Someone has to make sure you don't pass out on your way home. And Rangiku just might beat us both." Nanao laughed to herself as she thought of the last time the three had a drinking contest. It was such a long time ago now. Another lifetime ago.

"Maybe, but she doesn't seem to be much of a threat. I still hold the rank of champion in our squad." Shunsui had started a game at one of their squad's Friday night parties. And so far he hadn't lost a single game. But Nanao had never participated. "You should play with us sometime. Maybe you'll beat my record of seven bottles."

Nanao smiled at him. "Nine..." Nanao didn't see Shunsui's face. She was already fast asleep.

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	34. Collecting Dues

I do not own Bleach.

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Nanao stretched out as she woke up. 'Maybe sake in the afternoon isn't such a bad idea. Afternoon naps are nice.' She smiled as she sat up and looked around for her glasses and clip.

She found them on the floor beside the couch. She quickly pinned her hair back up into a tight bun and slid her glasses back onto her face.

"Aww. Nanao-chan looked so cute with her hair down." Nanao looked towards the sound of Shunsui's voice. It was coming from behind his desk.

"How do you know I put my hair up? I can't even see where you are." Nanao folded Shusnui's kimono up before she got up from the couch.

"There is something for you on the coffee table." Nanao still couldn't see him behind the large piles of paperwork.

She looked on the coffee table, and was greatly surprised to see the 8th squad Fukutaichou badge on it. "What made you change your mind?" Nanao tied the familiar block of wood to her arm.

"You were right. I was scared, but I won't let anything happen to you. Plus it was either I pick a Fukutaichou or Yamaji was going to assign one to me." Shunsui was worried Yamamoto was going to assign an old man as his Fukutaichou. Not something he wanted to see.

"Did it have anything I do with the kido squad requesting me to transfer? You know they offered me their Fukutaichou position a few weeks ago?" Nanao wasn't interested in the kido squad. It was interesting, but if they were just going to out her at the top, then why not stay and learn skills she hadn't mastered.

"No I didn't, but someone was there requesting you for the position. And since you are my Fukutaichou, they can't request you unless it is for an exercise." Shunsui smiled as he heard Nanao move around the piles of papers to her new desk. "And then they have to return you."

Nanao walked around the office, but stopped once she caught sight of Shunsui's bare chest. She took a step back and turned to hide her blush. "Sir, where is your uniform?" Nanao had forgotten that he always sunbathed with no clothes. But she didn't think he would do it in the office.

Shunsui frowned as he turned to see Nanao's arm sticking out from behind a pile of papers. "Somewhere at my feet. The sun has been very strong today."

Nanao threw his pink kimono at his face. "PUT YOUR CLOTHES BACK ON! You're in the office! It is completely inappropriate for you to not wear your uniform in it!" She turned back around so she wasn't looking at him. She couldn't help but smile at the sight of his tan skin. She was fighting herself to not just run her fingers over his chest.

"But no one can see me. Even if they open the door." Shunsui tucked his kimono under his head as a pillow.

"I CAN!" Nanao was having trouble keeping a smile off of her face. "Especially from my desk."

"Nanao-chan can look as much as she wants. I don't mind." Shunsui smiled as he saw her back straighten. He was just picturing the blush that was most likely spreading across her cheeks. "Am I a temptation?"

"Hardly. And stop being inappropriate. It is unprofessional." Nanao walked over towards the door to the office.

"But being professional is no fun." Shunsui laughed a bit, it was fun teasing her. Even with completely true statements. "Where is my lovely Nanao-chan going?"

"Just going to go get something." Nanao open and closed the door behind her. "Be careful if you go in there. Taichou is being childish today." She spoke to the secretaries as she walked towards the door to the office building.

Nanao decided to take her time walking to her destination. She was a bit excited actually. Today was finally the day.

"Halt! What business do you have?" Nanao looked up at the Central 46 Guard.

"Ise Nanao. I've come to collect something that is owed to me." Nanao smiled as the guard nodded and knocked on the large door.

The door opened to reveal another guard. "Please follow me, Ise-san." Nanao followed the guard inside the building. Once they got to the assembly area, she was directed to the centre of the floor in a circle of light.

"Why have you come here, Ise Nanao?" Nanao could have thrown a book at them.

She took a breath and tried not to sound to annoyed at them. "I have come to collect on the deal we made." She could hear murmuring among the members. 'Lets see how what you do.'

The doors in front of her opened once more. A guard walked out and handed her her Tanto, Chishitoge. She nodded her thanks to the guard.

"You have your zanpakutou. Now leave." Nanao could hear a bit of nervousness in the man's voice.

"Why did you chose what zanpakutou I received? Don't I get to chose?" Nanao had a bit of trouble keeping a smirk off of her face. That would give her away most likely. And she knew they would treat it her as being guilty until proven otherwise.

The room was silent for several tense moments. "We are no longer in possession of your katana." Number 1 didn't wish to lie to the girl. They had already put her through enough. "We do not know how it happened, but it is no longer in our vault. We are sorry. Please escort Ise-san out."

Nanao found herself actually speechless. They had told the truth? Since when did these stuck up politicians do that? She found herself being almost forcefully removed from the room while she was still shocked.

'I'm as surprised as you.' Chibara didn't think they would be that gentle. They weren't the first time they met.

'At least we got Chishitoge back.' Nanao strapped her still sealed Tanto to her arm, once they left the building. He was easily concealed in her sleeve. 'Now I have a guard on both arms. But now I have to learn how to use a bladed staff.' Nanao began walking back towards 8th squad compound.

'That is sure to be fun. I'm sure Shunsui will help. Especially with your duel wielding practise. Since he is the only one with two sealed zanpakutou forms other than you.' Chibara was a bit excited about having his brother back. He knew it was going to be a little crazy when they unseal him. He was probably going to be attached and talkative for a while.

Nanao laughed a bit as she followed her cat's thoughts about his brother. 'I just don't know if he will take the training seriously. Don't forget, I'm his precious Nanao-chan. He doesn't want anything to happen to me.'

'Maybe you should show him that he doesn't need to. Push him a bit.' Chibara smiled at his master from her inner world.

Nanao smiled with her cat. 'That sounds more like something Chishitoge would say. It's going to be interesting to see what Chishitoge thinks about you outgoingness.' Both zanpakutou and shinigami laughed at the possible reactions the purple cat would have.

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	35. Welcome Back

I do not own Bleach.

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Nanao was slowly making her way back to 8th squad. She could guess what she was going to find.

'So when are we going to let Chishitoge out?' Chibara wanted to materialize, but Nanao kept him in her inner world. He was a bit frustrated. He couldn't sense his brother because of the sekkiseki stone.

'Calm down. Probably once we get back to our room. Cause I know it is either going to be him jumping out here or pulling me into Marionette's Graveyard.' Nanao rounded the corner and walked through the gates into 8th squad compound. 'Hopefully we can get enough practise in before the joint exercise.'

'Isnt that in a few months? We have plenty of time.' Chibara brushed against Nanao's conscious pness. He was eager to have his brother back.

'Calm down. Don't forget we have important things to do before then. First off, we need to check about the holiday I asked for. We need to get in contact with Urahara.' Nanao turned the corner and looked up at the office building. She wasn't too surprised to see someone lounging on the roof. But what surprised her was the figures lack of clothing, anywhere. "TAICHOU! PUT YOUR CLOTHES BACK ON!"

Shunsui sat up a bit and saw Nanao glaring up at him. "But I will get tan lines. Or does my Nanao-chan want to keep my body for herself?"

"THAT IS COMPLETELY INAPPROPRIATE!" Nanao wished she had a book with her. 'Does he want to annoy me?'

'He has always been a tease. The question is where he is in his teasing. Still just thinking of you as the little girl, or as the woman you are becoming?' Nanao sighed at Chibara's comment. She made her way into the office building and to her and Shunsui's joint office.

She tensed a bit when he swung into the window. Luckily he had his hakama back on.

Shunsui slung his pink kimono over his bare shoulders. "So why did my lovely Nanao-chan go to Central 46?" He had been a bit worried when he had felt her reiatsu heading that way. But now he was curious. And very relieved she was back.

Nanao slid both her zanpakutou off of her arms and laid them on her desk. "Just had to get something back from them." Nanao smiled as Chibara materialized and began rubbing himself against the sealed Tanto. "Do you want me to do it now?"

"Please." Chibara looked at her with large round eyes.

"Is that Chishitoge?" Shunsui sat back on his desk and tried not to knock any of the sucks of paper over.

Nanao picked up the stone encased sword. "Yep." She took a deep breath before smashing it against the desk.

A chip fell from the guard. The rest of the stone casing was pushed away by a think black smoke. The smoke spread out before condensing into a ball.

Nanao didn't know what would happen when she unsealed the cat. So she just stood patiently and waited. She didn't hear him, nor did she feel his presence. 'Chishitoge?'

The black ball turned purple and furry. Then it launched itself at Nanao. Nanao fell over as the purple cat purred and rubbed himself against her neck and face. She soon had her black cat on top of her as well.

"Nanao-chan!" Nanao smiled as she heard the childish voice of her second cat. "I'm back! I'm really back!" Chishitoge was almost certain he would never he get out of the white prison he had found himself in. It would have driven him mad, if he wasn't already mad.

Nanao sat up and hugged her purple cat. He black cat sat on her shoulder quietly. "It's good to have you back to, Chishitoge."

"Nanao-chan is cute with kittens." Shunsui had a smile on his face the entire time. He had never seen Nanao this happy. "Maybe the kitties can help Nanao pack cute clothes for our spa trip."

'Did I invite him when I was falling asleep?' Nanao was glad Chishitoge was still rubbing against her face. That way Shunsui wouldn't see her confused face.

'Yes.' Nanao almost laughed at the return of Chibara's quietness.

'Maybe you can start your relationship early.' Nanao cracked a smile at Chishitoge's teasing. It was good to have him back.

"When do we leave?" Nanao had both of her cats on her shoulders. "We do have a large backlog to finish though."

"No paperwork. You said you didn't even want to think about paperwork. So you go pack, and I will take care of the rest." He walked towards the doors to the office. He had a few things he still needed to take care of if they were going to the world of the living.

"Taichou." Shunsui turned to look back at Nanao. He caught what Nanao had thrown at his face. It was his kosode. "Uniform regulation, sir." Nanao smiled at him. She tried not to blush at the toned chest she had tried hard not to stare at. She had looked a few times, she couldn't help herself.

"My Nanao-chan doesn't want anyone else to see what a lovely body I have. As my lovely Nanao-chan wishes." He quickly made his way out of the office as Nanao threw something at him. He smiled as he left, she was cute when she got flustered.

"He certainly knows how to push your buttons, Nanao-chan." Chishitoge was glad he hadn't missed much. He was reviewing his brother's memories quickly. "Can we just kill Aizen? It would be a bother to wait for him to mess up."

"I actually wan to be with him at the end of this. So no, becoming a criminal for killing a Taichou is not on my list of things to do. But accidents can always happen." Nanao pushed both of her cats back into her inner world. She caught her blades and striped them back onto her arms. 'Let's go pack!'

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	36. Vacation Begin

I do not own Bleach.

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Nanao pulled a duffle out of her closet. She began gathering clothes.

'Nanao-chan has gotten better at lying. I'm surprised.' Chishitoge had gone through most of what happened in the past decades he has been gone. He skipped over the assassination attempts. 'How are we gonna find creepy candy man?'

'I'll try his store location first. Hopefully he isn't there. Otherwise I'm sure Aizen would have killed him by now. And if I can find him...I'll try the Vaisard warehouse.' Nanao remembered the general location of the hideout, but not the exact location. But she was sure she could find them.

"Ready to go?" Nanao turned and threw her fan at Shunsui's face. It hit him square between his eyes. He rubbed the hurt spot. "That hurt Nanao-chan." He whined with a frown on his face.

"Then knock before entering a room. Especially a woman's room. That is highly inappropriate." Nanao closed up her duffle. 'Darn it. Don't have a swimsuit in case we go somewhere else. I'll pick one up at Urahara's.'

'That will be fun. Especially if the cat lady is there.' Chishitoge started flipping through the swimsuits Yorichi had tried to get Nanao to wear on occasions. 'I personally like the purple one.'

'That was not a swim suit. All it was was strings and a small triangle of fabric. NOT A SWIMSUIT!' Nano threw the bag over her shoulder and turned to Shunsui. "Ready."

"Then let's go." Shunsui tried to put a hand on her shoulder, but Nanao had a fan up her sleeve. "How many of those do you have?" He rubbed his stinging hand. She had a strong wrist on her.

A sad smile spread across Nanao's lips. "Yadomaru-senpai gave me a large box of them for my birthday one year. She told me to always have one with me." She slid the fan back into the pocket she had hidden in her sleeve.

Shunsui walked beside her with a small smile on his face instead of his goofy grin. "Lisa-chan certainly taught you some good things. But I wonder what bad habits you may have picked up from her? Like listening in on Taichou meetings?"

Nanao blushed a bit but said nothing. She had listened in on a few meetings so that she knew what was going on. And those meetings were the ones that Shunsui had decided not to go to. Or the ones while he was in his drunken depression.

Shunsui chuckled at Nanao's reaction. They walked in a comfortable silence to the Senkaimon gate.

"Where are you two heading?" Nanao and Shunsui looked behind them. Walking towards them was the Taichou of 10th squad, Shiba Isshin. "You two going on a trip of some kind?"

"My Nanao-chan thinks I need a break. And she needs one as well." Shunsui smiled at his fellow Taichou. The two of them got along very well. "Where are you heading?"

"There is something I need to check." Isshin smiled and walked beside his friend. "Congratulations on the promotion, Ise-Fukutaichou."

"Thank you, Shiba-Taichou." Nanao gave the man a smile. She always wondered how the man was related to Jushiro's Fukutaichou. Turns out he was Kaien's uncle.

"I'll make sure Kaien doesn't pick on you too much. Although I'm sure Shunsui does a good enough job at keeping any boys away." Isshin always wondered what type of relation the Taichou and now Fukutaichou had. At first he though it was just a father-daughter relation. But he wasn't sure anymore.

The three walked in silence through the Senkaimon. They emerged above a small town.

"Wow." Nanao hadn't expected them to end up above Karakura town. It was exactly where she had hoped they would end up.

"First time in the world of the living?" Isshin didn't think that was true. Most shinigami went on a few mission here during their time in a squad.

"No, but it is my first time during the day. Most of the time I show up at night and leave at night. I never get to see it in daylight." Nanao quickly came up with an excuse. It was true, from what they knew. But Nanao had spent quite a bit of time in this town while she was a Taichou. Back before all of this.

"I'll see you guys back in Seireitei. Take care." Isshin waved as he headed off. He had some things to check on.

Shunsui tipped his hat up with his eyebrow. His friend was usually never in a hurry. Unless he was running away from his own Fukutaichou. "Well nano-chan, I have a few things I need to pick up. Why don't you look around a bit? I'll signal you when I'm done."

"Okay." Nano didn't know what he was up to. She landed on a power pole and looked around. 'Now to find Urahara.'

'Try the cat that is staring at you.' Nanao followed Chishitoge's advise and looked towards the black cat on the next pole over.

She caught sight of its golden eyes and smiled. She walked along the power line and knelt down in front of the cat. "You have the same look as when you are human, Yorichi-san." Nanao gave the cat a smirk.

Yorichi smirked at the girl in surprise. "How'd you know it was me?"

"As I said, same look. You also have the same presence." Nanao scratched Yorichi's ear.

Yorichi couldn't help the purr that escaped her lips. "You good with cats or something? Not even Kisuke can make me purr." Yorichi saw the blush spread across the girl's face. "Just teasing you, Nanao-chan. So whatcha doing here?"

"I need to speak with Urahara. It's urgent." Nanao lifted the strap of her duffle over her head to secure it better. She guessed they would have to move quickly.

"Hide you reiatsu, and follow me." Yorichi began walking along the power lines.

"I can't just vanish. They'll suspect something." Nanao followed the cat along the wires.

"We will take care of that." Yorichi was surprised to see a purple and black cat following her. "We'll emit Nanao's reaistu signature while she follows you." Chishitoge smiled at the surprise in the black cat's golden eyes.

"Okay. Let's go." Yorichi took off down the power lines.

Nanao was quickly following Yorichi. She wasn't at all surprised to find herself in front of Urahara's candy shop. It was just in a completely different location. She followed the cat into the shop.

Nanao braced herself as a man with a striped hat cam in with a large smile on his face. "Hello there! Welcome to Urahara's-"

"Stop being strange, Urahara-san." Nanao crossed her arms as the man settled down a bit.

"Good to see you as well, Ise-san. You certainly grew up." Kisuke smiled at the now grown woman. He was quite surprised to see her. "Have you come for you katana?"

"No. I don't need him at the moment. But I will be back for him." Nanao dropped the smile on her face. "Aizen is planning something. It involves Shiba-Taichou and Kurosaki."

"Hmm. Interesting. I did find out who this Kurosaki-san is. She is a Quincy." Urahara was a bit surprised at Nanao's reaction. She didn't seem surprised at all. "Did you know?"

"A hunch. I think they are the key to bringing down Aizen. Otherwise he wouldn't bother with them." Nanao needed to keep him off of her. The less he suspected about her, the better.

"I understand. I will keep an eye one them. Did Shiba-san come with you, or was he already heading here?" Urahara had seen the man Nanao was talking about the other day. 'Probably had something to do with that strange Hollow.'

Nanao gave the shopkeeper a small smile. "What selection of swim ware do you have? I don't seem to have a swimsuit for my trip I'm on." Nanao saw the glint in his eye. She was a bit worried. But not by much.

"I have a very large selection to chose from. Come to the back and I will show you." Urahara waved the woman further into the store.

Nanao slid out of her sand legs and followed the man to the back storage room. She was surprised to the large selection he had. "Does Yorichi-san wear any of these?" She looked down at the cat beside her.

"Would you like me to chose one for you?" Yorichi gave the girl a smirk.

"No thank you." Nano did not want to see how skimpy of a suit the were-cat could find. She began leafing through the suits till she had three picked out. One had a ruffle dress that attached under the bust and was a one piece in a deep red colour. Another was a bright purple bikini with a ruffled mini skirt. And the last was black with a V-neck that showed her belly button. "And to think these are the most conservative ones you have in my size."

"Sorry about that." Kisuke kept the fact that Yorichi had told him to hide any of the more modest ones from the girl. "Will that be all?"

"Yes thank you." Nanao stuffed the suits into her duffle. "How is everyone?" She asked softly as she picked up her bag.

Urahara sat down and opened his fan. "They are doing alright. Some are depressed, others are angry, but all have accepted their new life."

Nanao knew exactly where everyone fit into the categories Urahara had given her. "Can you say 'hi' to Yadomaru-senpai for me, if you get the chance?" She slid the shop door open and looked back at the former Taichou.

Urahara closed his fan. "I will."

Nanao gave him a smile. "Thank you." She waved as she left the shop and headed towards her cats. They seemed to just be walking around. 'Now time for a vacation.'

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	37. Vacation End

I do not own Bleach.

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Nanao sat in a tree as she waited for Shunsui to signal her. She watched as children played with their parents. She couldn't help the heartache she felt.

'Im sure Seto-chan is fine.' Chishitoge knew exactly where her mind was.

"He may not eve exist anymore." Nano spoke softly, but she could hear the sadness in her own voice. She blinked back tears as she leaned back against the tree.

"Who may not exist, Nanao-chan?" Nanao jumped at Shunsui,a silent approach and fell back wards. Shunsui easily caught her and smiled at her blushing face. "I think it might be safe for my Nanao-chan to not climb trees anymore."

"If you let me know you were coming I wouldn't have fallen!" Nanao pushed herself out of his arms and onto her feet. "You done whatever you needed to do? What are you wearing?"

Shunsui looked down at his clothes. He was wearing a pair of dark wash jeans, black dress shoes, and a pink button up shirt with the top four buttons undone. "Does it look strange?"

Nanao blushed as she did a full look around of him. "No. It just looks strange to see you out of uniform."

"But I was out of my uniform earlier." Shunsui smiled as Nanao blushed again. He avoided her fan as it went towards his face. "Nanao-chan gets violent when she is embarrassed."

"Then don't say such inappropriate thing!" Nanao yelled at him while she retrieved her duffle bag for. The tree branch she had been on. She noticed her own Gigai on a nearby branch. "When did that get there?"

"The same time I showed up. I went to pick them up." Shunsui smiled as Nanao slipped into the Gigai.

Nanao jumped down from the branch. She looked at what she was wearing. She was in a raspberry pink sundress with a pair of black flats. She saw Shunsui smile and sighed. "Did it really have to be pink?"

"It looks beautiful on you." Shunsui was glad she wasn't fully yelling at him. It meant she was completely against wearing the dress.

"Thank you. But now I have to change my hair." Nanao pulled her hair out of its clip. She put the clip into her bag and pulled out two flower barrettes. She pined the hair opposite to her bangs back. She liked having her bangs cover part of her face. It allowed her to not be easily recognized.

"Nanao-chan always looks cute. Your hair got longer." He was a bit surprised to see her hair fall past her shoulders. He didn't think it was that long.

Nanao gave him a smile as she walked up to him. "Hair grows when you don't cut it, Taichou."

Shunsui gave her a smile as he placed an arm around her shoulder. "For this trip call me Shunsui."

Nanao whacked his hand with her fan. "That would be inappropriate, sir."

"But we aren't working, and this is a vacation." He gave Nanao a pouting face. "Pretty please Nanao-chan."

Nanao eyed him through the corner of her eye. "We aren't that familiar with each other, Kyoraku-Tai-" Shunsui gave her the most hurt look he could make. "Kyoraku-san." She noticed his mood lighten almost immediately. "But only for this trip. Got it."

"Yep. My loving sweet Nanao-chan." Shunsui picked her up and stepped into shunpo. They were at the resort in six steps. "Here we are. A mountain resort with a lake and hot springs. There are even springs were we can be together, Nanao-chan."

Nanao quickly got out of his arms. "I don't think we will be using those hot springs." She quickly made her way into the lobby. "What is the reservation under?"

"I'll take care of it. Wait here for me, my lovely Nanao-chan." Shunsui dropped his bag beside Nanao and walked up to the desk.

"I'm not your anything." She spoke in an annoyed voice. 'But I wish I was.'

'I'm cure the black suit will do the trick.' Nanao blushed at Chishitoge's comment. 'Although, I'm sure any of the three will do the trick.'

'Hopefully there is more than one room. Otherwise this is going to be a dreadful three days.' Nanao leaned against the wall after dropping her bag beside Shunsui's.

'Just more fun for us to watch.' Nanao gave her zanpakutou an annoyed face through her mind. 'What? I've been alone for a while. So don't blame me if I want to see a bit of fun.'

'He's back.' Nanao turned her attention away from her cats at Chibara,s observation. The black cat was becoming quiet again.

"I have the condo key, so let's go settle in. And maybe even go for a swim. The clerk said the lake is beautifully warm this time of year." Shunsui picked up both duffle a before nano could pick up her own. "Shall we?" He offered Nanao his free arm.

Nanao could see other people in the lobby looking at them. She sighed as she wrapped her arm around his. She saw a goofy grin on his face as they walked down the path to their condo. "Don't think I will do this at work. This is private life. It is separate from work."

"So here you would do things you would not do at the office." Shunsui led Nanao down the path to where the clerk had said their condo was.

Nanao moved her hand down his arm and laced her fingers through his. "Yes. This is something I would do out of uniform." She looked away from him and made it look like she was looking at the scenery around them.

Shunsui brought Nanao's hand up to his lips and kissed it. "I like being out of uniform."

Nanao couldn't keep her gaze away from him. And she couldn't break eye contact once their eyes met.

They had both stopped walking at this point. Shunsui let the duffle bags drop to the ground. He placed his other hand on Nanao's cheek.

'Looks like you don't see her as your daughter.' Shunsui stopped as Katen Kyokotsu spoke.

'This isn't going to take long.' Nanao snapped out of her half daze at Chishitoge's comment.

Nanao and Shunsui noticed each other stop. "Zanpakutou?" Nanao asked while giving Shunsui a smile. Shunsui nodded his head as he picked the duffle bags up. They continued down the trail till they reached a small cabin. "It's cute."

"There is a queen bed in the bedroom and a pullout couch in the living room." Shunsui unlocked the door and held it open for Nanao.

"I'm going to change." Nanao grabbed her duffle and headed for the bedroom. She shut the door behind her and slid down the door. 'That was so close. Why did you have to stop it!?'

'What? I was just making an observation.' Chishitoge defended himself with his innocent voice. 'So which swimsuit are you going to wear?'

Nanao stood up and dropped her duffle bag on the bed. She unzipped the bag and pulled out the three swimsuits. She noticed a scarf that she hadn't packed as well. It was black white and grey swirled. "Must be for a skirt with the swim suits or something. I think Rangiku told me about them."

Nanao laid the scarf thing down and looked at the three swim suits. The black was definitely out. She didn't feel too comfortable wearing the bikini yet either. She grabbed the red one piece and walked to the bathroom. She didn't want to risk Shunsui just walking in without knocking.

Nanao walked out of the bathroom with her clothes in a ball under her arm. She stuffed the dress into her duffle and grabbed the black scarf thing. She too the two ends that didn't have tassels. Then she wrapped it around her till the ends met back together and tied them together.

'Now you can't tell that you're wearing a one piece.' Nanao smirked at her cat's comment. 'Don't you think she looks nice brother?'

'Yes.' Nanao couldn't help the giggle she let out. Chishitoge didn't believe her that Chibara had become as talkative as himself when he was gone.

"You okay Nanao-chan?" Nanao threw a fan as the door opened. Shunsui frowned as the fan smacked into his face. "Nanao-chan has a good arm on her."

"I have to. Otherwise all of the men that are swooning after me would just carry me away." Nanao pulled out her hair clips as she walked back to the bathroom. She began braiding her hair, but it didn't seem to go how she wanted it to.

"Let me." Shunsui ran his hand through Nanao's silky hair. He smiled as she dropped her hands and waited for him to finish. He had braided Nanao's hair often when she was younger, but not recently. He tied her hair off we the ribbon she held out for him to use. It was a bright pink ribbon. "Done. Nanao-chan looks very cute."

"Do I ever look anything but cute?" Nanao pulled off her glasses and set them on the vanity counter. She didn't want to lose them, and they would only hinder her sight when they got wet.

Shunsui laid a feather light kiss on Nanao's neck. He felt her neck suddenly stiffen. "Nanao-chan is beautiful..." He placed a kiss below her ear. "...elegant..." He placed a kiss on her cheek and looked in the mirror at her half closed eyes. "...and breathtaking." He whispered softly against her cheek before walking out of the bathroom.

Nanao gripped the edge of the counter once he was out of sight. 'Oh. My. Gosh. If he did that again I don't think I could hold back. My gosh that was sexy and seductive.'

'I think it is safe to say that he wants you.' Chishitoge was laying on his back. He had been curling into a ball then entire time Shunsui was in the bathroom.

'No kidding.' Nanao ran a hand over the spots where he had kissed her. She shivered remembering how his lips felt on her skin. It felt like they were burning into her skin.

"Shall we go for a swim?" Nanao walked out of the bathroom to see Shunsui leaning on the doorframe to the bedroom. He wore a pair of pink flowery swim short. His hair was still in its usual ponytail, but there was no sight of his pins. He didn't have his usual sakkat and kimono on either.

Nanao walks past him and let her hand run over his chest and down his arm to his hand. She looked back at him with a smile. "Sure."

'I don't think you screwed up.' Katen Kyokotsu laughed as her master was left speechless. 'Well don't leave the little kitten hanging. Say something or do something.'

Shunsui gave Nanao a smile. The line her hand had drawn tingled pleasantly.

He held her hand and led her to the patio door. A crystal clear lake laid at the end of a path. A steaming hot spring was down a shorter path. But Nanao seemed to be looking towards the lake, so he lead her down that path.

They got to the lake after a few minutes. A pair of lounge chairs sat near the water's edge with a towel on each.

Nanao walked over to one and discarded her black wrap skirt on it. She turned around and saw Shunsui's eyes scanning over her body. She blushed and fidgeted a bit.

Shunsui saw he shift uncomfortably. He walked up to her and leaned down to her ear. "Shall we swim?" He didn't wait for a response as he picked her up and slung her over his shoulder.

"SHUNSUI!" Nanao screamed as he threw her into the lake. She surfaced and gave him a glare. "Don't do that all of a sudden!" Shunsui walked out to wards her with a large smile on his face. "What's that face for?"

Shunsui wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close to him. "Nanao-chan used my name. Why wouldn't I be happy?" He placed his hand on Nanao's cheek again. He leaned in close to her face.

"Oka-san! There are people kissing!" Nanao and Shunsui looked over to see a small child on a floating chair floating by.

"Kirito! What did I tell you about going out too far?" A woman swam over to the boy and began pushing him back to were he had probably come from. "Sorry about him."

Nanao and Shunsui waved at the woman till she was out of sight.

'This is a bit awkward now.' Nanao slid out of Shunsui's arms and dove under the water. Nanao had always loved swimming. Despite having cats as zanpakutou.

Shunsui sighed as another opportunity slipped away. He slid under the water and just watched Nanao swim. She looked like she was born to be in water.

Nanao caught sight of Shunsui watching her. She surfaced for air and then dove back down again. She swam below him and gave him a wink. Then she continued to shore. She walked out of the lake and squeaked water out of her braided hair. She moved her skirt to the back of her chair and grabbed the folded towel. She dried her face before laying the towel down and laying on top of it.

Shunsui watched as Nanao laid down on the lounge chair. He caught her wink at him again before she closed her eyes and let the setting reflect off of her wet skin. 'She is a siren.'

'And we all know you would willingly follow her to the bottom of an ocean.' Katen Kyokotsu rolled her eyes at her master.

Shunsui walked out of the lake and to the lounge chairs. He grabbed his towel and draped it over his head. He looked over and saw Nanao watching him out of the corner of her eyes. "I'm going to sit in the hot spring. Fell free to join me, Nanao-chan." He slowly began walking back up the path.

Nanao watched him head back up the path. 'I forgot how toned his body is. And how great it felt. Kami, I don't think I can make it through this trip without jumping him.' Nanao pulled the ribbon off of her hair and ran her hand through it.

'You have three days Nanao-chan. And remember what you said. This is out of uniform behaviour. You can go a little wild.' Chishitoge gave Nanao a wink.

Nanao sighed as she sat up. She threw her towel over her shoulder and grabbed her skirt. She began walking back up the path. She made her way up the tiny path to the private hot spring.

She stopped when she caught sight of something pink on a boulder near the spring. "Shunsui? What is this?" Nanao crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow at him.

Shunsui leaned his head back and smiled at Nanao. "Those are my swim trunks. Is my lovely Nanao-chan joining me?"

Nanao pinched the bridge of her nose. "And why aren't you wearing them?" Nanao dropped her towel and skirt on the blonder beside the one Shunsui's swimsuit was on. She leaned against the rock.

"Do I need a reason to wear them?" Shunsui turned and knelt on the seat he had been sitting on. "Nanao-chan can take hers off if she wants to."

"There are children nearby. And indecent exposure is an offence that can get you arrested." Nanao threw Shunsui's swimsuit at his face. "Put them back on before someone sees you."

Shunsui smiled as he put his swim shorts back on. "Nanao-chan used my name again. I wish she would use it at work more." He watched as she walked around to the other side of the hot spring and slide in.

"That is work. This..." Nanao walked over to him and laid her hands on his chest. "This is pleasure." Her hand slid up his chest to his neck.

Shunsui snaked a hand around her waist and pulled her close to him. "They can go together." He frowned when he felt Nanao's hand leave his neck. He followed her gaze to see a small black butterfly land on her finger. "What could they want?"

Nanao pushed herself away from Shunsui and sat on the ledge that was below the waterline. She listened to the message with a frown. She sighed as the butterfly finished it's message. "Message recieved. Return message. We are on our way. Prepare a Senkaimon to open in an hour at current location." She sent the butterfly away and lifted herself to sit on the outside wall of the hot spring.

Shunsui laid his arms and head on Nanao's lap so she couldn't move further away. "What was the message?" He looked up at her with a curious face. His fingers brushed her still wet skin.

Nanao drew in a shuttered breath. "Shiba-Taichou has gone missing. 12th squad can't detect his reiatsu and no one has heard from his since this morning. You have a Taichou meeting once we get back." Nanao slid out from under his arms and stood up. She draped her towel over her shoulders and walked back to the house.

'So much for going wild. Didn't even get one night it of this.' Nanao wiped her feet off with her towel before heading back into the cabin. 'Stupid Aizen with his stupid plan.'

'If you had killed him you might still be in that spring with tall-dark-and-handsome.' Chishitoge smiled widely as Nanao gave him an annoyed look. 'Just saying.'

Nanao sighed heavily. 'Yeah I know. But keep it to yourself next time.'

* * *

I needed to write some fluff. Let me know what you thought of it.


	38. Plans in Motion

I do not own Bleach.

* * *

~a few months later~

Nanao sighed as she closed the door to her and Shunsui's office. She had been running around all morning looking for him. But she hadn't had any luck. Every since their little vacation, neither had really spoken to each other. Nanao knew Shunsui wasn't doing it on purpose. He was just giving her space to think about what she wanted. He was a considerate guy like that.

She set the stack of papers she had been carrying around down on her desk. She doubted she was going to find him until later on. 'Why can't he just stay in one place?'

'Because he is an overgrown and energetic child?' Nanao smiled at Chishitoge,s description of Shunsui. 'It fits him.'

"Good morning, Ise-Fukutaichou." Nanao spun around and tried to whack him, but Aizen just caught her hand. "Striking a superior, that is reason for an arrest." Aizen gave the girl a smile, but it didn't last. "What did you do?"

"I don't know what you are talking about." Nanao tried to get her wrist free of Aizen's grasp, but he had an iron grip on it.

"The Kurosaki family. Where are they?" Aizen had tried to find them, but they weren't anywhere they should have been.

"I don't know. Maybe your spies are just dumb." Nanao still couldn't free her wrist from his hold. She was surprised how her voice still sounded so calm.

Aizen leaned close to her face. "You will pay for this. You will pay dearly." He released her wrist and stalked out of the office. He checked around him to make sure he wasn't seen. Then continued down the hall.

Nanao rubbed her sore wrist as she glared towards the door. 'That is it. I need to get rid of him before he causes any more trouble.'

'Shunsui.' Nanao was confused by Chibara. Then she noticed the subtle pulse of his reiatsu.

Nanao turned and saw him sitting on the windowsill. "Kyoraku-Taichou? Is everything alright?" He never made a silent entrance to the office.

Shunsui gave Nanao a small smile. He hid the pain of finding her in Aizen's arms from her. "Nothing is wrong, Nanao-san. Just thought I would stop by and see if there was anything for me to do." He saw a deep worry spread over Nanao's face. She knew she had been caught. "But I'm suddenly not feeling well. I'll see you tomorrow." He jumped out the window and headed away from the office.

Nanao just stared at the window. 'He...called me...Nanao-san. Why?' Nanao leaned against her desk and pressed a hand over her heart. It felt like it was breaking.

'Its okay Nanao. Next week is the squad exercise. You can take care of Aizen then. At least this way, Shunsui won't get pinned with anything. Hopefully.' Chishitoge tried to comfort Nanao as much as he could. But he knew there wasn't much he could do.

'Practise. Clear your mind.' Nanao nodded at her black cat's suggestion. She could always refocus her mind while she practiced.

'One week. In one week I have to get Shunsui as far from me as possible. Safely away from me.' Nanao squared away her desk before making her way to the training grounds.

~one week later~

Nanao stood beside Shunsui with her kido book in her hands. They stood in a line with the other Taichous and Fukutaichous while they waited for the Soutaichou to start the exercise.

When it finally began, the Taichous and Fukutaichous remained on the side of the field and observed the training. Most of it was single matches and team matches.

Yamamoto observed how none of his senior most officers remained out of the training. "You all should join as well. Any blade will grow dull with age."

"I think they are doing well enough." Aizen spoke calmly while keeping his eyes on the training field. "I'm sure if we were to participate, we would just distract everyone else."

"But it may also be a good way to encourage them." Nanao spoke calmly as she argues Aizen's point. "Most of the shinigami are in awe at the power that their superiors hold. We feel out of reach to them. If it were to be exhibitions matches, it would allow them to see that a training exercise like this is not above us."

Gin smiled at his friend' scouters to Aizen's argument. "It might be fun. I could have a rematch with Nanao-chan." Gin gave the girl a smile.

Nanao returned his smile. "Careful, Ichimaru-Taichou. I might beat you again."

Yamamoto nodded at the proposal. "Exhibition matches it is then. It will be Taichou vs. Fukutaichou. So that they can see the difference between ranks."

"But I don't want to fight with Nanao-chan." Shunsui had gone back to using Nanao's nickname. It just sounded strange otherwise.

Nanao raised an eyebrow at him. He was completely fine when they practised together. She adjusted her glasses. "You can randomize the pairings. Then they are also not used to each other's fighting style."

Yamamoto saw most everyone nod and agree with the idea. "Very well. Any volunteers for the first match?" He scanned the line of Taichous and Fukutaichous. None made any move. But he did see two pair of eyes meet then look away. He could see the tension in the brief gaze. "Very well. SHINIGAMI, CLEAR THE FIELD! WE ARE HOLDING EXHIBITION MATCHES!"

All of the shinigami that were on the field quickly left the field. They were all eager to see exhibition matches between their superiors.

Yamamoto smiled at how quickly they were to clear the field, but how much patience they lacked otherwise. "THE FIRST MATCH WILL BE...5TH SQUAD TAICHOU, AIZEN SOSUKE...HIS OPPONENT WILL BE 8TH SQUAD FUKUTAICHOU, ISE NANAO."

Nanao could see the surprise spread across Shunsui's face. Nanao fixed her glasses as she took a step forward. "Be careful, Nanao-chan."

Nanao looked at Shunsui and smiled. "I will." She passed him her book. "Can you hold this for me?" She turned her gaze towards her opponent as they made their way to the middle of the field. "Let's have a good match, Aizen-Taichou."

* * *

The suspense! Please leave a comment.


	39. Confrontation

I do not own Bleach.

* * *

Nanao gave Aizen a normal smile as they faced each other in the middle of the training grounds.

"What are you planning, Ise-chan?" Aizen gave the girl an amused smile. "You can't do anything against me. That would only cause chaos among the ranks."

"Accidents happen." Nanao gave him a smile with her response.

"PREPARE YOURSELVES." Yamamoto was curious to see how well the girl had improved. He was worried Shunsui would have made her too soft. But he wanted to see if that was true or not.

Aizen drew his katana slowly. He saw Nanao draw her wakizashi from her sleeve. "How do you plan on doing anything with only half of your power?"

Nanao gave Aizen another normal smile. "You would be surprised what I can do, Aizen-Taichou."

"BEGIN." Yamamoto leaned on his elbows to watch the match.

Nanao stepped around Aizen as fast as she could. She struck out at his back knowing he would block. Aizen met Nanao's gaze. "It is pointless. I am already far beyond your level."

Nanao saw a flash of purple cross his cold, dark eyes. She back away as quickly as she had attacked. 'The Hogyoku? He already has it?'

"Don't get distracted." Aizen attacked her open front. Nanao brought up her left arm and blocked. Aizen raised an eyebrow. "How much did you condense your reiatsu to block and not be cut?"

Nanao tilted her arm and slid Aizen's katana towards her elbow. Her sleeve tore with it. She backed away and tore off the sleeve to the shoulder. The rest was just loose fabric.

Aizen smiled as he saw the second weapon strapped to her arm. "I always wondered where you carried your zanpakutou."

Nanao drew her Tanto and prepared to attack again. She attacked from the side.

Aizen managed to block, parry, or dodge all of her attacks. "How long have you been duel wielding? Is that what you and Kyoraku-kun have been doing together so late at night?"

"None. Of. Your. Business." Nanao punctuated each word with an attack. The last one managed to hit Aizen on his arm. She didn't smile as everyone gasped in surprise. "How long have you been in Shikai, Azien-Taichou? I didn't even hear you release."

The Aizen that Nanao had cut became a puddle of water. Another Aizen appeared near the center of the field. "Silent release, most Taichous have such a skill."

Nanao brought her zanpakutou up for defence. 'Chibara, I need your eye.' She blinked and smiled as she saw Aizen coming towards her and standing still. She brought her swords up and blocked an attacked.

Aizen revealed himself when the attack hit. "Very good. But you can not beat me at this level."

Nanao rolled backwards and kicked Aizen off of her. She brought her swords up in front of her. "Madness Rises From The Blood Soaked Ground, Laughter Permeates The Stagnant Air, Chibara Chishitoge!" She pulled her hands away as claws covered her fingers and chains connected them to studded bracelets. "Playground Open!"

Aizen stood still as a black shadow covered the entire training grounds. "Fascinating. Your Shikai is quite powerful." He gave the girl a smirk. 'But not strong enough.' He sent a wave of water at her with a wave of his katana.

Nanao smiled as she straightened up. "You may not want to do that." Nanao lifted a hand towards the wave of water. Purple smoke rose from the ground and began to eat away at the water till there was none. Nanao took a deep breath, but it caught on the exhale. She covered her mouth with her hand as she coughed.

"NANAO-CHAN!" Nanao pulled her hand away and looked towards Shunsui. He was worried. She gave him a smile and a wave. He still looked worried.

'Did my own miasma attack me?' Nanao could feel her blood in her hand. It was already becoming sticky.

'Without Gaikotsu to protect you, yeah it is attacking you. Better put it away.' Nanao nodded as she headed Chishitoge's advice.

Nanao suddenly felt a raise in her reiatsu. She looked down and saw drops of blood running down her claws. 'Might as well.' She pulled off her glasses and crushed them. Her reiatsu spiked dramatically.

"Is something wrong, Ise-chan." Aizen was impressed by the power she was hiding, but he wasn't worried about it. "Suddenly loosing control isn't something a Fukutaichou should do."

"I didn't lose control. I just lost a bit of sanity." Nanao unclipped her hair. Her reiatsu rose once more. It was now on par or above most of the Taichous that where watching the match. She delicately dug her claws into her palms. She needed more power if she wanted to keep the Soutaichou from suppressing her again.

"ISE-FUKUTAICHOU! SEAL YOUR ZANPAKUTOU!" Yamamoto glared at the girl that was gaining power at an unimaginable speed. He pressed his own reiatsu against her's, but it had no effect.

'Chishitoge, I'll borrow your eye as well.' Nanao closed her left eye and opened it. Now she saw the flow of reiatsu, and what was truely going on. She turned her gaze to the Soutaichou as her power jumped once more. "Shut it, old man."

Everyone took a step back. She had not only just insulted the Soutaichou, but there was a powerful killing aura coming from her.

Aizen pointed his katana at her. She had gone insane. "You're making a foolish mistake. They will kill you." He was just worried she would manage to kill him or reveal his plan before they could.

Nanao spgave Aizen a wide smile. The edge of her mouth almost managed to reach her ears. "I doubt that." Nanao took a step towards him. She was behind him in one step.

Aizen spun to block. But didn't see where she had attacked. He felt her claws slash across his chest. He took a step back and fell to his knees as he coughed up blood and blood poured out of his massive wound.

"AIZEN-TAICHOU!" Nanao heard the crowd shout from beyond the barrier of her playground. No one could walk onto her playground with out her permission. She laughed as they all tried and failed over and over again.

"NANAO STOP!" Nanao looked behind her. Shadows pooled at Shunsui's feet as he emerged from the black ground. The ground was covered in shadows.

Nanao was surprised to feel no smile on her face and her mind clear of killing thoughts. "Leave Shunsui. It's not safe for you here." As she looked at him, she could make out all of the openings she could exploit. All of the ways to make his blood give her more power.

Shunsui was shocked by the killing intent he saw growing in Nanao's eyes. "I can't leave you here."

"You should." Nanao felt a smile spread across her face again. Her power was growing again. She turned and saw Aizen attempting to stand. His attempt was causing more blood to fall into the shadows. "You should just stay down. That way you die in comfort." Nanao brought a claw up to her face with a wicked smile.

"Who are you!?" Nanao looked back at Shunsui over her shoulder with a raised eyebrow. "Nanao-chan doesn't kill people!"

Nanao gave him a weak glare. "You don't know me. So you can't say a word." She turned her head back to Aizen. He had fallen to his knees again.

"I do know you. And this isn't you!" Shunsui took a step towards her tentatively. He had never seen her like this before.

Nanao turned around and faced him fully. "NO YOU DON'T! You don't know what my childhood was like! You haven't even realized I'm in love with you! I took you on vacation with me!"

Shunsui was stunned by her confession. He went to reply, but a searing heat stopped him.

Nanao turned to see her playground being slowly burned away as a figure walked towards her. Yamamoto was furious that the girl had not heeded his warning. He as sad that his student could not calm the girl down. But the was mostly disappointed that the girl had lost control of her powers once more. "Ise Nanao, you are under arrest. Seal your zanpakutou and come quietly."

Nanao didn't know what part of her brain was in control, but she knew it wasn't her normal Fukutaichou brain. She laughed at the Soutaichou's request. "You can't catch me. You could barely make in onto my playground. Wonder how powerful I am now." She brought a hand up to her face. She felt her Hollow powers settle in her hands. She dragged it across her face as it solidified into a mask of a cat with red, purple, and black stripes on it.

She saw the surprise on Aizen's face. She saw him asks himself quietly how she got her mask. She smiled at the usefulness of learning lip reading.

Yamamoto was even more confused. She was not involved in the incident with Urahara. But, how did she have the same side effect that the others had after his experimentation? And how had she hidden it so well?

Nanao tapped the air behind her. She felt a Garganta open up behind her. "I'll be leaving peacefully." She side glanced at Aizen. "Maybe not so peacefully." She pointed a hand at Aizen. "Hado 91: Senju Koten Taiho." She saw Aizen's eyes flash purple before he vanished. Nanao shrugged as she turned towards the Garganta. "It was worth a shot-"

Nanao turned her head and saw Aizen standing beside her. His hilt pressed against her side. "I won't let you leave. Not alive at least."

Nanao acted on instinct. She slashed at his throat. He pulled away with his sword. She felt the blade pull out of her body. It had gone completely through her. She smiled through the pain. She had cut through a bit of his neck.

The moment he was away from her, she launched herself into the Garganta. Nanao shut her playground off as soon as she stepped into the black void. She closed the Garganta once she was safely inside. She paused and looked back at where the entrance had once been. 'Good bye Shunsui.' She turned and continued running. She couldn't stop, not yet.

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Please leave a comment.


	40. New Plan

I do not own Bleach.

* * *

Nanao wasn't all that surprised to find herself looking at the world of the living at the end of the Garganta she had opened. She his her presence as best she could before stepping out into it. Rain was falling heavily as she walked through the streets. She was surprised how easily she was able to find Urahara's shop.

She slid the door open and closed it quickly once she was inside. "Sorry about dragging in half the ocean." She spoke as she squeezed the water out of her hair. She was soaked.

Urahara slid the door between his living room and the store open. "Ise-san? What brings you here in this weather?" He noticed how pale the girl was and the various wounds he had. Her palms were bleeding a bit, but a large red pool was growing at her feet. "Tessai, bring towels and bandages quickly."

Nanao tried to take a step, but found her legs no longer able to support her. She felt her weight being supported. "Thank you."

Urahara sat the girl down on a towel that Tessai had laid down. "What happened?" He began patting the girl down with a towel to see where the blood was coming from.

"Stupid mistakes." She took a breath as she fought waves of nausea. "Aizen has also already fused with the Hogyoku."

"If he has, then it is one he created himself. The on I created is hidden." Aizen didn't like the news the girl had given him.

"Can I have Gaikotsu? I'm going to need to learn how to use him. And now I don't have to worry about Aizen finding out about it." Nanao shivered as the cold water in her uniform chilled her body.

"I'll get him. Take off those clothes before they get you sick." Urahara headed off to the back storage room.

Nanao quickly took off her uniform and underwear before she wrapped herself in towels. She grimaced a bit when the towel brushed against her wounds.

"Here." Nanao saw Yorichi drop a bag beside her. "We will need to wrap your wounds. And I'm sure you would like some modesty."

Nanao nodded as she peered into the bag. "A bikini? It will do." She quickly slid the swimsuit over her body before Kisuke cam back with her sword.

"Here we are." He looked up from the sword in his hand and caught sight of the wounds Tessai was treating. It looked like she had been run through. "That looks painful."

"No kidding." Nanao clenched her jaw as the man began wrapping her wounds. "Thank you, Tessai-san."

"There are clothes in the back room you can change into." Urahara pointed behind him. "Don't overexert yourself."

Nanao nodded as she made her way past the shop keeper and to the back room.

Urahara set the sword down against the wall. He sat down and contemplated the information he had been given. Aizen had created his own Hogyoku, and had fused with it. It was going to be difficult to stop him now.

"Kisuke." The man looked towards the cat sitting across from him. "We will need to hide her. Aizen will probably make it so she is a criminal as well. Maybe we could send her to them. I'm sure some of them will be fine with her."

"But most won't. They will still see her as a shinigami." Urahara got up and headed to his lab.

He came back out with a black body shaped mass in his arms. He laid it down beside him as he sat back down.

Nanao walked out a few minutes after that. She had on a denim skirt that went to her knees, black and purple striped tights, black converse, one black and one purple belt, a black shirt and a demon jacket. "Tessai-san, can you cut my hair?"

"How short?" Tessai had tried hair cutting with Kisuke, but he thought he cut too much off.

"Jaw line or shorter. Doesn't matter. But leave the bangs." Nanao sat down slowly so as not to strain her wounds. She was certain she already had, but didn't want to damage them further.

Tessai nodded as he went to work.

"Why cut it?" Urahara watched as the girl transformed once more. "No one will recognize you."

"Good. The less people who realize who I am the better." Nanao was surprised at how quickly Tessai had finished. She ran a hand through it, it was pretty even. "Thank you Tessai-san." She pulled the hair on the opposite side of her bangs back and clipped it with a pair of flower barrettes.

"Now what? Where will you go?" Urahara slid the blank Gigai to her.

Nanao slipped into the Gigai slowly. She sat up after it was finished fitting. "I'll find the others. I know the general location of where they are." She stood slowly as she tested various things on the Gigai. "It hides my reiatsu?"

"Among other things. But that is the main feature." Urahara held her katana our to her. He noticed she had a wakizashi and Tanto on her belts. "Three zanpakutou?"

"Yeah." Nanao took her katana from Urahara's hand. She stepped over to the store section before hitting it against the ground. The stone crumbled off of the bright red guard and hilt. 'Hello, Gaikotsu.'

'Hello again, Nanao.' Gaikotsu purred as he rejoined his brothers in Nanao,a inner world.

Nanao fold a strap on Gaikotsu's guard. Placed it over her head so Gaikotsu laid across her back. "I'm off then."

"It's still raining." Urahara knew she wasn't going to let rain stop her. She needed to hide, and quickly.

Nanao looked back at Urahara. "Then I'll run." And she did just that. She was surprised that she was still able to use shunpo, but she was grateful she could.

She stopped running once she was inside a warehouse. She knew the Vaisards were in one of the abandoned warehouses around here. She just wasn't sure which. 'Chishitoge, I need your eye.' She blinked as she adjusted to the new vision. She saw multiple masses of reiryoku around her. She had the right ware house. "You guys have a towel I can borrow?"

In another blink she had her Tanto out and was blocking a blond haired man. "How did you know we were here, girly?"

Nanao was a bit surprised at who she was talking to. She would have thought he might have recognized her. She sighed as she pushed him back. "I dint know exactly where you were. But thank you for telling me."

A look of realization crossed the man's face. Right before a sandalled foot pressed against the side of his face. "IDIOT! That was why I said not to move. YOU JUST GAVE US AWAY MORON!"

Nanao shocked her head and laughed as she sheathed her Tanto. "Still have a killer temper. Ne, Hiyori-san?"

Hiyori looked towards the girl standing in front of her. She didn't recognize her. "How do you know my name, woman?"

"How could I forget it? But I'm not a midget anymore." Nanao smiled down at the girl. Hiyori had been a few inches taller than her when the Vaisards had disappeared. Now she had a feet on the girl at least.

"Nanao-chan?" Nanao turned and looked towards the figure walking out of the shadows. Lisa looked towards the grown up girl standing infront of her. She had the same short hair Nanao had, and the same pink hair clips. "Is it you, Nanao-chan?"

"Hello, Yadomaru-senpai." Nanao smiled as her mentor ran towards her and hugged her.

"I'm so sorry for leaving. And leaving you with that idiot." Lisa hugged Nanao tighter as she held her. She released the girl when she let out a hiss of pain. "What's wrong?" She saw the blood that had transferred to her own shirt. "Hacchi! Get over here!"

"I'm fine." Nanao lied before Lisa put a hand on Nanao's sides. She let out another wimper of pain. "Maybe not completely fine. But I'm not dying."

"What happened?" Lisa led Nanao towards a large piece of fallen wall.

Nanao sat down slowly. She caught sight of the other Vaisards joining them. "I kept a bit too much of a close eye on Aizen. He was up to something and I had to try and stop him. But look how that turned out?"

"So that was why you never liked him." Shinji smiled at the girl. She had grown up. "So are you a criminal now?"

"I think so. I think being called a criminal does fall under almost killing a Taichou and disobeying the orders of the Soutaichou, multiple times." Nanao winced as Lisa peeked back Nanao's bandages.

"Almost?" Lisa was surprised Nanao was that strong.

"Yeah. I got a really good hit in. And I would have killed him, but appear entry Taichous don't stand by when one of their own is being cut down in front of them." Nanao knew that would hit a nerve. She waited for them to respond.

"Did you lose control like in the academy?" Lisa spoke calmly s she helped Hacchi tend to Nanao's wound.

"Yeah, but I never lost control. I just lose my sanity for a bit." Nanao smiled at Lisa. She felt a shock run through her body. She looked back and saw a man with a star shaped Afro step back. "Careful. My zanpakutou are touchy when I'm hurt."

"Are they all yours?" Nanao looked up towards the large figure that was Hacchi.

"Yes. All three are mine. But I'm not skilled in using a katana. I've had Urahara holding onto it for me. I was wondering if you could help." She looked over towards Shinji. She guessed he was the sort of undeclared leader.

"No way! She's a shinigami." Hiyori didn't mind the girl, but she was still like their enemy.

"Mostly." Nanao smirk at the short blond. "I'm probably also a criminal because of this." Nanao pulled her mask over her face. She lifted it away so it didn't muffle her voice as much. "Seems they didn't like my little trick."

"Where did you get it?" Nanao looked over to the other blond haired man.

"Same as someone you will eventually meet." She winced as Lisa began rear appoint her wounds.

"Quit being cryptic!" Hiyori was getting annoyed.

"How in control are you?" Shinji stepped in front of the woman. She was very different than the girl he had met at the academy. In more ways than just her appearance.

"I control the mask." Nanao looked Shinji in the eyes.

Shinji smiled at the fire in Nanao's eyes. "Want to learn how to fight with a katana?"

Nanao smiled at the former Taichou. "When do we start?"

* * *

Let me know what you think.


	41. The Return

I do not own Bleach.

* * *

~20 years later~

Nanao took a deep breath as she pulled her katana over her head.

"You heading somewhere?" Nanao turned and looked at the Shinji. Shinji smiled at the girl. She was a strong fighter. "Not very many places to go."

"I'm going to check in with Urahara." Nanao knew none of the others really trusted the man. Nanao didn't trust him either, but she needed information.

"Why bother?" Nanao looked up to see Hiyori sitting on the ledge a over her. "The guy is the reason you're like us! Why trust him at all?"

Nanao sighed as she took another step towards the door.

"When will you be back?" Nanao looked back into the worried eyes of her mentor.

"Morning, no later." Nanao felt a bit of déjà vu. "If I'm not back by afternoon, assume I got caught."

"Want us to break you out?" Nanao gave Shinji a look that asked him if he thought she was an idiot. Shinji laughed at the look. "Fair point."

"Keep in contact with Urahara. You might hear interesting things." Nanao left the warehouse without another word.

She knocked on Urahara's door a few minutes later. She had gotten faster wile training with the Vaisards. She slid open the door after she knocked. "Urahara-san?"

"Come in. Just working on something." Nanao followed the voice of the shop keeper to his living room. She found him trying to balance teacups on their round side.

"That seems very productive." Nanao sat down and watched as the man tried to stack the cups. "How is Rukia-san doing?"

Urahara stopped and looked at the woman sitting across from him. She now wore a raspberry pink shirt with denim shorts and converse. Her hair was still short and she still sported the two pink flower clips. He watched her as her face stayed the same. "How do you know of Rukia-san?"

"That...is an excellent question." Nanao had learned how to be as vague as him over the years. "Why don't we have tea while we discuss it?"

They spoke till the sun had set. But not very much informations had been shared.

"So you knew her before you went to the academy. But she is much younger than you?" Urahara scratched his head. He could tell Nanao wasn't lying to him. But she certainly couldn't be telling the whole truth.

"Yes." Nanao took another sip of her tea. They were on their third pot at least. She put down her cup when she suddenly felt a familiar reiatsu. "I have to go." She threw her zanpakutou over her head as she slipped her shoes on.

"You'll get caught. And they probably have orders to kill you." Urahara didn't move to stop her. He had found out just how stubborn she could be.

"Probably capture for trial, and kill if I resist. And it's Kuchiki Byakuya. The guy is honour bound. The execution of a subordinate with no trial should be done by the Taichou. He won't kill me." Nanao headed for the door. 'All of you. Fully into the graveyard.' Nanao felt the weight of her weapons vanish.

"Are you crazy?" Urahara asked her jokingly. He knew the answer to that.

Nanao looked at him over her shoulder. "No, just a bit mad."

Nanao easily found Renji, Byakuya, and Rukia. She was surprised to see a fourth person. He was a lanky guy with black hair and glasses. She stepped in front of him as Renji brought his blade down. Nanao caught it with her hands.

Renji looked at the woman in front of him with surprise. He didn't recognize her. "Get out of the way, woman."

"Quincy." Nanao remembered who the lanky guy was, but couldn't remember his name. "Get out of here. You can't do anything else." She heard the Quincy retreat and run out of sight.

"You just want to piss me off don't you?" Renji pulled his bald away from the woman.

"Ise Nanao." Nanao looked over to the figure of Kuchiki Byakuya. She frowned as she saw him without his haori. "You are a wanted criminal. Why show yourself to save a weak Quincy?" Byakuya vaupguely remembered the woman. She had been Fukutaichou of 8th squad in his earlier years of being Taichou of 6th squad.

"I'm not here to save the Quincy. He just got lucky." Nanao could feel a large reiatsu heading towards them. "I'm here to make sure Rukia doesn't leave with you."

"What?! How do you know Rukia?" Renji swung at the woman again. But she seemed to just step out of the way each time.

"Doesn't matter." Nanao stepped around Renji and was standing in front of Byakuya. "She isn't leaving."

"Quit moving." Nanao was surprised when something hit the side of her head.

'How did I not sense that?' She scanned the area. She noticed Renji's reiatsu had massed back where he had been attacking her, then shut it off to attack her again. 'Wow. I need to work on that.'

"Not so high and mighty now huh?" Renji brought his blade down to finish off the criminal.

"Hold." Renji stopped at the one word from his Taichou. Byakuya looked Dow at the woman. She had fallen to a trick of the senses. A dirty trick, but what was done, was done. "We will take her to Central 46. If her Taichou had been here I would have left the punishment to him. But he is not. So she will stand trial."

'Good guy Byakuya. Man how hard does Renji hit!?' Nanao could feel her consciousness slipping. 'Remind me never to get into a fist fight with him. At least not when I am unprepared.'

'Sleep Nanao. There's nothing more you can do.' Nanao smiled at Gaikotsu's words. He was the one cat she had that was even close to normal. Or, as normal as a talking red cat can be. She heard a clash of swords as her mind fell off into darkness.

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Please leave a comment.


	42. The Return II

I do not own Bleach.

* * *

Nanao woke up to a head splitting headache. She grumbled as she turned over and wished for sleep to take her again.

"Nanao-chan?" Nanao opened her eyes slowly. She saw hat she was in a cell. And sitting outside the cell, was a man with a pink kimono on his back and a bamboo hat in his hands. His hair looked like it hadn't been washed in a while. And she could smell sake. "Welcome back, Nanao-chan. How do you feel?" Shunsui gave the woman a weak smile.

Nanao pushed herself up into a sitting position. All of her muscles screamed and her headache doubled. But she stayed sitting. "You drink too much." She leaned back and used the wall as a chair back.

*tinkle tinkle tinkle*

She looked down at herself. She had a pair of sekkiseki cuffs on. Her clothes had also been replaced with a white yukata that 4th used. "I'm guessing I'm not getting that Gigai back anytime soon."

"Mayuri was very displeased that Central 46 didn't allow him to research it." Shunsui looked over the woman again. Her hair was shorter and she had no glasses. But she still looked like his Nanao-chan.

"You sure it's Central 46 giving orders?" Nanao leaned her head back against the wall. Her headache was making her feel nauseous. "How's the squad doing?"

Shunsui frowned at her first question. What was she talking about? He cleared his throat before speaking. "The squad is fine. They miss you."

Nanao raised an eyebrow at him. "How is the paperwork?" She eyed him when he didn't answer. She rubbed the side of her head. "How full is the office?"

Shunsui rubbed the back of his neck. "It's getting difficult to find a space to nap in."

"It's only been 20 years! There was less than that in the 80 years that you refusd to get a Fukutaichou!" Nanao cringed a bit at the volume of her own voice. He headache was annoying.

"It felt longer without my Nanao-chan." Shunsui saw the small smile cover Nanao's lips. "You look nice. You have short hair again."

Nanao ran her hand through her hair. "Yeah." She ran her hand through again and frowned. "My clips are gone."

"I have them. Retsu-chan held onto them when they treated your concussion." Shunsui tapped the two flower clips her had clipped to his kimono. "Why did you change?"

"I was tired of rules." Nanao laughed a bit. She had been the most rule abiding Fukutaichou. "It also made it harder for me to be recognized."

"Why did you leave?" Shunsui looked up from the floor. His eyes met her.

Nanao smiled sadly at him. "I couldn't stay. Not after what happened." She saw Shunsui going to argue, but held her hand up and stopped him. "I know it looked like I lost control again. But even that would have been bad. I lost control a second time. They would have deemed me too dangerous. Which would have either ended with me being executed, or locked up in the Maggot's Nest."

Shunsui didn't say a word. She was right. The only option she had was to run.

Nanao sat up a bit more. She had slid down the wall a bit. She grimaced as she stretched sore muscles again.

Shunsui noticed the stiffness in her movement. "I'm glad it was Byakuya-kun that found you. Anyone else wouldn't have brought you in."

"If it was anyone else, I wouldn't have let them bring me in." Nanao noticed movement behind Shunsui. "Hello, Unahana-Taichou."

Unahana gave the woman a small smile. "Hello, Ise-san." Retsu moved her gaze to the man sitting in a chair and facing the cell. "How long have you been here, Kyoraku-Taichou? I believe the Soutaichou specified that she wasn't suppose to have any visitors while she was here."

Shunsui saw a Nanao give him one of her looks. He couldn't help but smile at her natural response to him breaking rules. He put his sakkat back on his head and looked towards the Taichou of 4th squad. "I just got a bit lost trying to ring Jushiro." He looked back over at Nanao. "It's good to have you back, Nanao-chan. I'll see you soon." He nodded to Unahana as he made his way back to the main part of the hospital.

Nanao shook her head at Shunsui's actions. It wasn't anything unusual for him.

"Are you in any pain, Ise-san?" Unahana opened the cell door and walked in. She didn't feel the need for anyone to stand guard. She didn't think Nanao would still be in the cell if she didn't want to be in it. But why would she want to be in a cell?

"A headache and a few sore muscles." Nanao sat forward as the healer approached her.

Unahana started with her headache. The concussion shouldn't be giving her problems. "Where are your zanpakutou? Kuchiki-Taichou said you confronted him without them."

"I did. I didn't think I would run into anyone. Plus it isn't normal for someone to walk around with swords on their hips." Nanao closed her eyes as she felt the pain in her head lessen.

Unahana nodded as Nanao spoke. She couldn't detect any lies. "The sore muscles should relax if you stretch them gently. If the headache returns, I'm sure Kyoraku-Taichou would be more than happy to help you. You are being transferred to 8th squad or holding till Central 46 has decided what to do with you."

"Thank you, Unahana-Taichou." Nanao smiled up at the woman.

Unahana had no emotion on her face. "Unahana-Taichou? I'm here to see to the prisoner transfer." Unahana turned to the muscular man standing in the doorway to the cell. "Hello there, Nanao-san."

"Hello, Enjijo-san." Nanao smiled at the man. He seemed sad and happy to see her.

"I'll leave you to it then." Unahana smiled at the two before making her way back to the hospital.

"It's good to see you are doing alright. When I heard that Abarai-Fukutaichou had hit you in the head...everyone was worried. Taichou most of all." Enjoji gave his former superior a wide smile. "Do you need any help?"

Nanao found a pair of black flats under her bed. She slid them on and stretched a bit. "Not at the moment. But if I fall I may need help getting up." Nanao walked towards his and returned his smile. 'Not exactly the homecoming I would want. But it will do.'

* * *

Please leave a comment or a question.


	43. 8th Squad Cells

I do not own Bleach.

* * *

Nanao was laying on the floor of her cell. The sun was high and bright. So the floor was warm and the sun was warm. She smiled as she relaxed under the sun's rays.

"Are you part cat?" Nanao looked up and saw Shunsui standing on the other side of her cell. Shunsui smiled as he as her lounging in a similar way he did on days like this.

Nanao gave him a smile as she laughed at the question. "Well I do have a couple cats for zanpakutou. So I do believe a small part of me is catlike."

Shunsui sat down against the bars to Nanao's cell. "How long have you been here?"

"Not long. Enjoji-san had a lot to talk about. When did he become the 3rd seat?" Nanao still knew him as the 5th seat.

"A couple months after you left. Yamaji thought a seat shuffle would help me pick a new Fukutaichou." Shunsui took his sakkat off is head and spun it in his hands. He wasn't sure what to talk about. She felt like a stranger.

"At least you have people doing some paperwork. I wouldn't mind paperwork right now. I'm bored out of my mind." Nanao rolled onto her stomach. She wasn't as sore as before, but moving still tugged on a few muscles. "Your lucky."

"I wouldn't say that. Paperwork is a terrible punishment." Shunsui chuckled.

"How stressed have you been?" Nanao stood and stretched more. She made her way to the edge of the cell and sat down against the bars. She looked beside her at Shunsui. She could see bags under his eyes. "What does the office look like?"

Shunsui chuckled a bit. "I found my desk."

Nanao laughed at his stressed habit. She was glad to know he was still like his old self. "How did 1st squad feel about that?"

"I don't know if Yamaji wants to strangle me or scold me." Shunsui had easily avoided his old teacher when he had sent over all of the overdue paperwork. He looked at Nanao and held her gaze. "Why did you come back?"

Nanao smiled as she held his chocolate gaze. She wanted to melt. "I had unfinished business." She broke eye contact with him when she saw him going to speak. "I was cruel to you. I'm sorry."

Shunsui knelt behind her and placed a hand on her shoulder. He smiled as she turned to look at him. "You don't have to apologize. It was this blind old man's fault."

A peaceful silence settled over the two.

*KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK*

Nanao and Shunsui looked towards the entrance to the cell block. A tall man with short silver hair leaned on the wall. "Sorry fer interruptin'. Just wanted ta see if what people were sayin' was true." Gin have his friend a genuine smile.

"Gin-kun?" Nanao stood slowly and smiled at her academy friend. "Why are you here?"

"Am I not allowed ta check on a friend?" Gin spoke calmly. He really had missed her. "I'm glad we didn't have a rematch back then."

"I've been a bad friend." Nanao looked away from Gin. She was glad he was still alive. She had been worried that Aizen would have killed him off.

"Yer one o' my true friends. So yer always a good friend." Gin moved his gaze to the other man in the room. Shunsui looked to be uncomfortable. "Ya had a butterfly waitin' fer ya. "Central 46 has named Kuchiki Rukia and Ise Nanao as first class criminals. Both are gonna be executed in 30 days. Use of the Sokyoku has been permitted as well. And tomorrow they are gonna get transferred to the Senzaikyu. Rukia ta cell 4 deep and Nanao ta cell 9 deep."

"Isn't that a bit excessive?" Shunsui was surprised by the ruling. For Nanao's crimes, maybe, but for simple power transfer to a human? Something didn't seem right.

Gin shrugged as if he didn't know. "That's what Central 46 said. Bye bye, Nanao-chan. See you later." Gin gave her a smile as he left the cell block. He his his worry. He didn't want to see her hurt, but he needed Aizen to trust him.

Shunsui put his sakkat back on his head. "This is not a pleasant situation."

"Don't worry about it." Nanao saw the surprise on his face as he turned to her. "I'll be alright. I'm an adult now." She gave him a smile and a wink. He had always said he would keep her safe because she was his little Nanao-chan. She wasn't little anymore.

Shunsui reached through the bars and held her cheek with his hand. "I will always protect you, Nanao-chan."

"Don't take risks for my sake." Nanao knew he wouldn't listen to her. But she had to try.

Shunsui reached in with his other hand and held her face in his hands. "I will risk my life to keep you safe." He gently pulled her face to his till their lips touched. He kissed her gently. "I love you, Nanao."

Nanao smiled at him. "You should go. You have lots of work to do."

Shunsui gave Nanao a pout. "But I want to spend more time with my lovely Nanao-chan. I finally got a kiss from her sweet, soft lips."

Nanao laughed at him. "Will you ever change, Shunsui?"

"I distinctly remember you saying that you wouldn't have me any other way." Shunsui smiled before pulling her into another kiss. "And Nanao-chan is out of uniform."

"I like being out of uniform." Nanao whispered against Shunsui's lips. "And I still love you how you are."

* * *

Finally! I've been waiting to do their first kiss for a while. Let me know what you thought of it.


	44. Execution

I do not own Bleach.

* * *

~25 days later~

Nanao sat in the darkness of her cell. She didn't know what day it was. But she knew it had been a while. She smiled thinking of ways Aizen may have been delayed. But she frowned thinking he might just be trying to draw out Kurosaki Ichigo. She wasn't sure what he was planning.

"Stand." Nanao opened her eyes to see four figures standing outside her cell door. She stood still as they bound her hands and escorted her out of her cell.

'So it's execution day. How is the break out going?' She knew she may not hear her zanpakutou's response, but they could hear her.

'Almos...ere...' Nanao kept emotion off of her face as the guards escorted her out.

Nanao saw Rukia standing in the middle of the platform. The guards pushed her into a kneeling position on the side of the platform.

Nanao watched as Rukia rose up as the execution began. 'Anytime now.' She watched as the Sokyoku was released and it head towards Rukia. Then stop. 'Finally. Now!'

Nanao felt her reiatsu surge. Her bindings shattered instantly. The guards beside her stepped back in surprise. Nanao knocked them both off of the platform.

'Now for the destruction of the Sokyoku.' Nanao saw Shunsui and Jushiro move as ropes encircled the flame bird. Then it shattered. "Now the tower destruction...wait.'

Nanao saw Ichigo stab the tower and it begin to glow. Then her view was obstructed by a tanned figure. "Careful, Nanao-chan." Shunsui felt the blast from the tower being destroyed, but it wasn't anything he couldn't block with his reiatsu. "You okay?"

Nanao gave Shunsui a smile. "I'm fine. Thank you."

"Hello, Nanao-san." Jushiro greeted the woman his friend held in his arms. He was glad to see Shunsui smiling like a child again.

"What do you think you are doing, brats?" The three turned their eyes to the Soutaichou. Yamamoto could hear the fight continuing behind him, the boy was becoming troublesome. But this was more important to him.

"Nanao...hold onto me." Shunsui whispered as he tilted his sakkat down. He grabbed onto Jushiro's collar. "Let's take this elsewhere, shall we?" He spoke loud enough for Yamamoto to hear him.

Nanao moved closer to Shunsui. She stopped when she felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand. Nanao followed her instincts.

*CLANG*

Nanao held her Tanto in her hand. Her sword was crossed with a katana. "I see you, Tosen-Taichou. Still Aizen's dog?"

Tosen was surprised by her quick reaction. He didn't expect her to be able to block him.

Nanao gave him a smile. "Shouldn't you be somewhere?" Nanao felt an arm wrap around her waist and pull her away. "Shunsui?"

"Nanao-chan has gotten stronger." Shunsui was surprised when Tosen had attacked Nanao. He hadn't noticed the Taichou get so close to them.

"Shunsui, I need you to let go." Nanao knew where she would find Aizen. She just needed to get there quickly.

"Why?" Shunsui didn't want to let Nanao out of his sight. He had just gotten her back.

"Because I need to help Hinamori. Otherwise she might die." Nanao left out Aizen. She didn't know if he had killed himself again or not. "I'll be right back, I promise."

"Be safe." He loosened his hold on her enough for her to slip out.

"I will." She kissed his cheek before she slid out of his arms and headed towards the Central 46 building.

She ran through the sliced open door without pause. She made it to the back chamber just as Hinamori began walking towards Aizen. "STOP!" Nanao landed in front of Hinamori. "A little slow there, Aizen." Nanao glared at the man smiling calmly at her.

"Nanao-san? What are you doing here?" Hinamori was surprised to see Nanao. She had heard about the execution, but she didn't believe it was really Nanao.

Nanao glanced at the girl over her shoulder. She had just become Aizen's Fukutaichou when she had fled. "You should leave. It's not safe for you to be here." Nanao could see the surprise on the girl's face.

"Nor is it safe for you." Aizen had taken a step forward. He saw the surprise grow on both of the females' faces.

Nanao looked down at the sword in her stomach. 'I need to pay more attention. Gaikotsu.'

'On it.' Nanao felt the pain dull a bit, but it was still uncomfortable to have a blade sticking in her stomach.

Aizen pulled his sword back and let Nanao fall to her knees. "Isn't this a nostalgic scene. You should stay down, Ise-san."

"Don't ya need her alive?" Gin frowned. Aizen wasn't following the plan he had set down. Even though he had predicted that Nanao would show up.

"Not for much longer. She just needs to survive till we reach the hill. The. This world will no longer be a concern to her." Aizen stepped over Nanao's body towards the petite figure of his Fukutaichou.

Hinamori was stunned. Aizen had just stabbed Nanao, and he was smiling about it? This couldn't be her Taichou. "What have you done with Aizen-Taichou?" She took a step back and placed her hand on her blade.

Aizen stopped walking towards the girl. "He never existed, Hinamori. And it is better for you if you don't exist either."

"Aizen-Taichou?" Aizen looked towards the door. Hitsugaya Toshiro stood there with a stunned expression on his face.

"Seems Kira-kun didn't keep him busy long enough." Aizen frowned. He had taken precautions to prevent the white haired prodigy from getting back too quickly. But it seemed his efforts where in vain. "No matter."

Hinamori stood stunned as Aizen turned his blade on her. "Kya!" She waited for the feel of Aizen's blade cutting through her, but it never came. She opened her eyes and saw Nanao standing in front of her. "Nanao-san?"

"Momo, leave." Nanao held Aizen's blade between her hands. She noticed the girl still wasn't moving. "Hitsugaya-Taichou, please take Hinamori and leave."

The room fell into silence.

"Seems they're all just stunned. I think we may have broken em, Aizen-Taichou." Gin spoke calmly while moving closer to Aizen.

Nanao eyed Gin out of the corner of her eyes. "You should pay more attention." Nanao turned to her side, where the whisper came from. She felt steel run throb her body again. "Déjà vu once more, Ise-san." Aizen has his blad running through Nanao side. "Stay down this time."

"Nanao-san!" Hinamori ran towards Aizen with her sword drawn.

Aizen brought his hand back. He hit Hinamori across the face. He smiled as he heard a sickening smack as she hit the wall.

"Hinamori!" Toshiro had snapped out of his stupor. "Bankai!" He brought his blade down on Aizen and incased him in ice.

"Nice try." Aizen sheathed his blade as Hitsugaya hit the floor. "I failed to kill you once again. But the wound is much more grievous."

"You made quick work of them, Aizen-Taichou. No, Aizen Sosuke, traitor to the Gotei 13." Unahana stepped into the room calmly.

Aizen smiled at the healer with a bit of annoyance. "I do not wish to waste time as I did last time. This time, I will succeed."

"This time?" Unahana frowned at Aizen. What was he talking about?

"As I said. I do not have time to waste. Gin." Aizen stayed close to Nanao's body. He wasn't done with her yet. "Soon everything will be made clear. But I shall tell you what you need to know. I was the one that killed the Central 46 members. I was the one that has been giving out orders under their name. And soon, I will destroy you all."

* * *

Please leave a comment or a question.


	45. Changed Plans

I do not own Bleach.

* * *

Nanao was surprised at how much pain she could endure. She had been run through twice, yet she still felt like she could fight Aizen. 'Gaikotsu, are you dulling any of the pain?'

'A bit of it. The pain usually goes away after the injury has been inflicted.' Gaikotsu was inching to cut into some flesh. He had grown and become more like his brothers over the years.

'We have arrived.' Chibara drew everyone's attention to the outside world.

Nanao looked around. They were on top of the Sokyoku hill.

"Wonder what's takin' Tosen so long. He should be here." Gin stood beside Nanao as Aizen walked off towards a figure in black. 'It's that kid.'

'I have to get up.' Nanao moved to get up, but a cloud of dust drew her attention. When the cloud settled, Tosen, Renji, and Rukia were also on the hill. 'The Hogyoku...Rukia.'

"So everyone is here now. Good. Then we can begin." Aizen turned to Renji and Rukia. Renji hugged Rukia tighter and put a hand on his sword. "Now, now, Abarai-kun. There is no need to get so defensive." Aizen drew his own blade. "No defence will save you from me."

Aizen swung down on them, but his blade didn't meet them. He gave a wicked smile. "Hello there, Kurosaki Ichigo." Aizen smiled at the surprise in the boy's eyes. He pushed Ichigo's blade away and out of the boy's hand. "Good bye." He slashed his blade across the boys body. Aizen frowned when his attack hit. "How are you still able to fight, Ise-san?"

Nanao staggered a bit, but stayed on her feet. She could feel the large gash across her back, but it was beginning to numb.

"Are you okay?" Ichigo looked at the woman standing in front of him. Where had she come from?

"Nanao-san!" Rukia knew the girl quite well. She had accompanied Kyoraku-Taichou often when he had visited Ukitake-Taichou.

"Yare, yare. Why is everyone so worried about me? I'm stronger than most of you think." Nanao stood tall as she turned to face Aizen.

'Shunsui rubbed off on you more than Lisa did.' Chishitoge tried hard to not laugh. But he was failing. 'What's next? You start proclaiming your undying love him?'

Nanao felt Aizen rush towards her. She brought her wakizashi up and blocked his attack. The force behind the attack nearly knocked her off of her feet, but her managed to hold out.

"Gah!" She looked behind her to see what had happened. Ichigo, Renji, and Rukia had been thrown off of their feet and pushed back. They ended up a fair ways away.

"And now..." Nanao brought her attention back to Aizen. He had only one hand on his sword. The other was reaching towards her. "Now time to take what is mine. Urahara was smart to hide the Hogyoku in your soul. Your reiatsu would easily hide it."

"What?" Nanao was surprised. The Hogyoku wasn't inside Rukia? "Then why go through all of this?"

"I was hoping to get rid of Ichigo. But you got in the way of that." Aizen nearly had his hand at the base of Nanao's neck. "Now it is time to finish this."

"AIZEN!" Nanao and Aizen looked towards the tall figure of the 7th squad Taichou. His Bankai rearing up behind him. It's massive blade coming down between them and forcing them apart.

"Hado 90: Kurohitsugi." Aizen watched as his kido attacked the large Taichou.

"Komamura-Taichou!" Nanao watched as the kido opened back up. He stood for a moment, then fell as blood poured from his skin and matted his fur.

"Now...to claim what is mine." Aizen began walking towards Nanao again. But he stopped when he felt blades press against his neck. "Hello ladies."

"Make one move..." Yorichi gave the man a cold glare.

"And we will not his irate to remove yourhead." Sui-Feng held her blade to Aizen's neck as she perched herself on his shoulder.

"Kill him!" Nanao was glad to see the two women. "Just kill him!" She ran past them and towards Tosen. She struck out at him and he blocked. She heard a gasp as other people began to arrive at the hill. She materialized her Tanto and stabbed Tosen in the gut. "You shouldn't have gotten involved with Aizen." She pulled back and knocked his blade out back before drivin both of her swords into his chest. She felt a sting on the back of her leg as it went limp. "That was for Kensei and Mashiro." She noticed the shock on Tosen's face before his reiatsu vanished.

"Everyone, move!" Nanao looked over to see Yorichi, Sui-Feng, and Rangiku back away from who they had been detaining.

She took one step and fell. She had forgotten about her leg. 'He severed a tendon.' She struggled to get back up. And by the time she did, there was already a glowing box around her.

"So good for you to join me, Ise-san." Aizen wasn't upset to lose Tosen. It just meant he needed to find someone else to experiment on. "And now to perfect the ranks of traitors."

Nanao frowned thinking of what he meant.

*ROAR*

Nanao looked up to see a Minos Grande look down one of the gold columns. "Gin! Get out of there!" Nanao saw the confusion on her friend's face.

"It's too late for him." Aizen smiled as a cero filled the inside of the column Gin had occupied.

"Missed me, Aizen." Nanao and Aizen looked over to where the voice had come from. "Thanks fer the help, Kyoraku-Taichou. Although I don't think Yamamoto will be too pleased about me losin' ma haori." Gin stood as shadows dripped off of his uniform. He had been very surprised at both the attack and the rescue.

"Not a problem." Shunsui sealed his Shikai and sheathed his blades.

Aizen couldn't help but smirk. "So you finally decide to do something, Kyoraku-kun?"

Shunsui looked up at Aizen with a serious face. "I have a lot of wasted time to make up for." He turned his gaze over to Nanao. She didn't look to good. The white yukata she had been was stained red in most areas.

Yamamoto stepped forward. "What are you planning, Aizen Sosuke?"

"I plan to destroy you all. And since I know what you shall do, you have no way to stop me." Aizen removed his glasses and crushed them. Then he slicked back his hair. "There are many benefits for going back in time and trying again."

"Go...back in...time? What are talking about, Aizen?" Jushiro was confused to say the least. How was time travel possible?

"It doesn't matter. Such device no longer exists. But it does not matter." Aizen looked over at Nanao. "I have what I came for. And I think I will take my time. Since I don't have to worry about someone spilling my true plan." He gazed down at Gin. "You should have just trusted me completely. Then you might have been able to stop me better."

"What does this have to do with Ise-san?" Yamamoto was growing impatient. And Aizen was getting closer to the gate to Hueco Mondo.

Aizen smirked as he looked over to the Soutaichou. "Without Ise-san's help, I wouldn't have been able to come back."

Nanao felt stares from most everyone on her. But she just met one pair of brown eyes.

"Nanao-chan?" Shunsui couldn't believe that Nanao would help Aizen. It didn't fit with everything she had been doing.

Nanao felt tears prick her eyes. "It's true. But I didn't help him, he helped himself. I just got dragged along." She crossed her arms as she balanced on her still good leg.

"Why did you not try to get rid of her sooner?" Yamamoto was trying to find out what side Nanao was on.

"Oh, I did. Multiple time in fact. But she always seemed to pull through just fine." Aizen was still tying to figure out how the girl was still standing. She should have fainted or died from blood loss by now. "But now I don't have to worry about that. Farewell to you all. Don't expect to be able to stop me."

Nanao glared at Aizen before she found herself looking down at Shunsui again. She feel the worry in his gaze. She gave him a small smile before mouthing 'I will be back, I promise.' She could feel tears running down her cheeks, but she kept a smile on he face.

Shunsui smiled as he got Nanao's message. 'I'll be waiting' he mouthed back before she got too far away.

"Taichou meeting, now. Fukutaichous may attend. Ichimaru, come with me." Yamamoto turned away from the disappearing shinigami. They were out of reach. And now they needed to prepare for a war.

"Looks like I'm in trouble. See y'all at the meetin'." Gin followed Yamamoto. He took one glance back as the three pillars faded. 'Good luck, Nanao-chan.'

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Please leave a comment or a question.


	46. Welcome

I do not own Bleach.

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Nanao was struggling to stay on her feet. She didn't have much strength left. Her swords were already laying on the ground.

'Hang in there Nanao.' Nanao could here the worry in Gaikotsu's words. But she wasn't registering them much. She was focusing on not falling over.

"Tier, restrain her." Aizen spoke calmly as he stepped off the chunk of rock he had been standing on. "Ulquiorra, collect her swords. Lock them away."

"Yes, Aizen sama." The two Hollows did as their master commanded.

Nanao didn't fight back when the hollow grabbed her. She couldn't. She stood in front of Aizen and glared at him.

"Such hostile looks. And here we are going to be spending a lot of time together. I have a war to plan, and my Hogyoku isn't strong enough to do what I please." Aizen pulled the front of his kosode down to reveal a small purple ball imbedded in his chest. "But now, I have Urahara-san's. And your vast researches of reiryoku. Baraggan, come."

Nanao watched as a purple clothed skeleton came forward. Aizen placed a hand at the base of Nanao's neck. Then reached out and touched the skeleton. "Kya!" A bright flash filled the room.

When the flash died down, Nanao laid on the floor breathing heavily with tears running down her face. An old man stood in front of Aizen where the skeleton had stood. A two headed axe stood beside him. Aizen was smiling at the man. "And now, the Espadas shall rise. You are the Segunda Espada."

"Who is the Primera?" Baraggan question his lord.

"Starrk." Aizen looked towards the man that was leaning against the wall. Starrk looked up and met Aizen's eyes. "I am putting Ise-san in your care. See to it that no one touches her, Primera Espada." Aizen turned and walked out of the room. He had plans to continue.

Starrk sighed as he walked towards the woman. She wasn't moving, but he could hear her crying softly. He picked her up gently. "Send a healer to my room. That is where she will be." He then proceeded out of the meeting hall.

He pushed his door open and gently laid the woman down on his bed. He didn't use it. The couch was more comfortable.

"Who's this?" Starrk clamped a hand over Lilynette's mouth.

"She is Aizen-sama's, and we are going to be looking after her." Starrk sighed as the woman continued to breath normally. But her breaths were becoming shallower.

*KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK*

Lilynette pushed Starrk's hand off of her mouth. She ran over to the door and opened it. "What do you want?"

A timid girl stood in the doorway. "Coyote-sama requested a healer." She spoke softly as she looked past the green haired girl to the man in the room.

"Yeah. This woman needs healing." Starrk sat down on his couch and waited for the healer to be done.

"So who is she?" Lilynette sat on the arm of the couch and watched the healer work on the unknown woman.

"She came here with Aizen-sama. And she has the ability to create Espadas." Starrk had been surprised that the woman had possessed such a power. She seemed too weak to use it.

Nanao was awake while the healer worked. She was just to weak to keep her eyes open. She opened her eyes a bit once the healer said she was done. She was surprised at what Starrk looked like. He reminded her of Shunsui quite a bit.

"Hey look! She awake!" Lilynette ran over to the bed. But Starrk caught the back of her uniform and kept her from going any closer. "Hey! Let go!"

"She needs rest. So leave her alone." Starrk threw Lilynette back onto the couch. He looked back at the woman. He found the colour of her eyes to be interesting, and beautiful. "You should rest. It will help with the healing."

Nanao gave him a soft smile. He seemed rather nice. "Thank you, Coyote-san."

Stark returned her smile. "Sleep." He said softly as he watched her eye lids flutter close and her breathing even out.

*knock knock knock*

Starrk walked over to his door. He found Ulquiorra standing on the other side. "What do you want, Cuatra?"

Ulquiorra held up, what looked like a piece of black fabric. "Aizen-sama said to put this on the woman. It is so she doesn't escape. Or use her zanpakutou." He dropped the strip into Starrk's outstretched hand. Then he left without saying another word.

Starrk looked down at the black strip curiously. He then walked over to the woman and laid the fabric over her neck. It connected itself together when it's ends touched. "You shouldn't have thanked me, woman." He tucked her hair out of her face before walking over to his couch and laying down. There was nothing else to do but sleep and wait for her to wake up.

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Let me know what you think.


	47. Espada Creation

I do not own Bleach.

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In the following few months, Nanao had seen the faces of most of the Espadas. She had also seen one Espada exiled completely. And now she was going to see what the Noveno and Diez Espada.

Starrk stayed close to Nanao as he escorted her to the meeting hall. He had watched her become weaker every time Aizen created a new Espada. He didn't understand to protectiveness he felt for her. 'I'm just following orders.'

"Welcome, Nanao." Aizen greeted the girl nicely. She looked much different then when he had brought her here a few months ago. Her hair was now past her shoulders and she looked weak. "Come." He held out his hand for her too take.

Nanao walked towards him reluctantly. The ribbon around her neck would tighten if she said no. But it wouldn't choke her. It would choke her zanpakutou. And that hurt far more than if she was being choked.

She placed her hand in his and cringed a bit as she felt his reiatsu seep into her body. She hated these days.

Aizen touched the first Hollow beside him. It was a mass of tentacles and flesh. It stood and looked around. "Welcome, Noveno Espada. What is your name?"

"Aaroniero Arrururerie." The Espada spoke with what sounded like two voices. He looked towards the woman that was struggling to stay on her feet. "I know you." She looked towards him. "Or at least..." He removed his mask and watched with delight as horror grew on her face. "This guy knew you, Isa Nanao."

Nanao stared in horror at the Espada. "Kai...Kaien-dono?" Nanao felt her knees buckle. But they didn't hit the floor.

Starrk was glad he had stayed close to Nanao. She might have hurt herself.

"That's right. You didn't hear about most of the Espadas, did you?" Aizen pulled Nanao to her feet. He wrapped an arm around her waist as he led her to the next Hollow. "Now for the Diez Espada."

Nanao felt her whole body drain of energy as another flash of light covered the Hollow. She hated that the one supporting her was Aizen.

"Welcome, Diez Espada. What is your name?" Aizen hoped this one would live up to the title it was given. Because it was both the weakest and strongest Espada.

The Espada stood up and looked down at the man that had given him power. "My name is Yammy, Yammy Llargo."

"Starrk, you may take her." Aizen pushed Nanao off of his body. She was unless to him now. 'Now to figure out how to get the Hogyoku out of her body.'

Starrk caught Nanao before she hit the ground. She couldn't even stand on her own. "Lilynette." The small girl followed him out of the room.

"Starrk? What is going to happen to me?" Nanao had grown fond of the Espada. He wasn't like the others. They all assumed she was sleeping with him or Aizen. But he did nothing but protect her. He had even shown her around.

Starrk held Nanao close to him. He didn't like hearing the fear in her voice. It made his chest hurt. "I don't know. But I won't let anything happen to you, Nanao." Starrk pushed open the door to his room. He frowned when he found someone else in his room. "What do you want, Nnoitra?"

Said Espada looked over towards the man standing in the doorway. "Just thought I would stop by and say 'Hi'. But it looks like your about to become busy. So I'll come by later." Nnoitra walked past the man and sneered at the woman. "Have fun. And don't worry about being too loud. We all know what happens behind closed doors."

Nanao had had enough. She jumped out of Starrk's arms and held a hand up to the Espada. "Hado 90: Kurohitsugi!" She felt the kido leave her arm. Then a painful gripping sensation in her chest. She collapsed holding her chest while a black box encased the Quinto Espada.

"Nanao!" Starrk knelt down beside her. She had tried to used kido in the first few weeks of her captivity, but it was the same result every time. She would always end up hurting herself more than whoever she was throwing the kido at.

"What was that?" Nanao looked up and saw that only small bits of the Espada's uniform were torn. No damage was done to him. "That didn't even tickle." Nnoitra turned and continued down the hall. "See ya!"

"I hate that man." Nanao growled as Starrk helped her to her feet. She could still feel lingering pain from the lash back of the ribbon.

"I know." Starrk put an arm around her shoulder as he led her into the room. "Go freshen up. You look exhausted."

Nanao gave him a weak smile as she walked to the bathroom. "Lilynette, want to join me?"

"Yeah!" Lilynette liked spending time with Nanao. The woman didn't treat her like a child.

Starrk could help but laugh at his partner's childishness. Lilynette always acted like this when she was happy. And it would always give him a good laugh.

"Coyote." Starrk turned to see Ulquiorra standing in his doorway.

"What do you want?" Starrk wasn't in the mood for seeing anyone. Not after what Nnoitra had said.

Ulquiorra didn't move when he addressed the Espada. "Do not get to comfortable around Aizen-sama's property. He still has need of her." His eyes shifted to the bathroom door. Laughter and squeal could be heard through the door. "She belongs to Aizen-sama. And he does not like others claiming what is his."

"Nanao isn't property. She is a person. And she serves Aizen-sama like you and me. And I have not claimed her. She is simply in my care." Starrk wondered why his voice sounded forced. Did he think differently than what he said?

Ulquiorra turned to leave the room. "She belongs to Aizen-sama." He left without waiting to hear a reply.

Starrk growled as he shut his door. He walked to his couch and laid down. He needed a nap, a long nap.

Nanao and Lilynette got out of the bathroom almost an hour after going in. Lilynette dragged Nanao out of the bathroom. "Lilynette! I don't want Starrk to see me like this. This isn't my entire uniform."

"But it looks better like this." Lilynette had tried to get Nanao to change parts of her uniform. And this was the first time she had succeeded.

Nanao sighed as she walked out of the bathroom. She pulled the shirt down lower hoping to cover her belly button. 'At least the skirt goes To the floor.' She rubbed her hands on her bare arms. She missed the under layer that gave her long sleeves.

"Aw! The bum is asleep." Lilynette was tempted to punch him to wake him up. But she found herself being pulled back.

"Let him sleep. He was up early. I'm sure that is out of his sleep pattern." Nanao pulled he girl away from the sleeping man.

Lilynette sighed as she slipoed out of Nanao's arms and jumped onto the bed. "Being awake is out of his sleep pattern."

Nanao giggled with Lilynette. She was finding more and more ways Starrk was like Shusnui. He wasn't one to fight first either. He would much rather talk it out, or ignore it and walk away.

Nanao crawled onto the bed and pulled a pillow under her head. "I think his bad habits have influenced us." Nanao yawned and stretched. "Good night Lilynette."

"Good night Nanao." Lilynette curled up on the pillows at the head of the bed.

'Soon it will be the war. I wonder if Shunsui will come here. I doubt Yamamoto would allow that.' Nanao reached down her shirt and pulled out her heart shaped locket. She pulled it over her head and opened it. She closed her eyes as she listened to the melody. 'I hope he does though. I miss him.' Nanao closed her eyes and drifted to sleep with the sound of the locket lulling her to sleep.

No one heard the door open. And no one saw a figure smile with evil delight. 'Time to play.'

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Let me know what you think. And try to guess who entered the room before you read the next chapter.


	48. Living Nightmare

I do not own Bleach.

* * *

Nanao woke to the sound of metal scraping metal. She felt her hands restrained at her side and a cold table against her back. She panicked and began to struggle. 'Tell me this isn't 12th squad.'

"So your awake?" Nanao tried to find the owner of the voice. She vaguely remembered who it belonged to. "But it may have been better if you had stayed asleep. That way you would feel less pain." He stepped into the light with a scalpel in hand and a smile on his face.

Nanao's eyes widened as she realized who was speaking. It was Szayelaporo Granz. 'Never mind. 12th squad is better. 12 squad is better!' Nanao struggled more against her restraints.

"Now, now. Don't fuss to much. Otherwise I might mess up." Szayelaporo pressed a button and smiled as more restraints held the girl down. "Ill try not to kill you. But at may mean more pain. I hope you don't mind. I want to hear you reaction."

Nanao shut her eyes and wished it all to go away. She didn't want to see the scalpel get close to her skin.

Szayelaporo leaned down close to Nanao's ear with a smile. "Scream for me." He whispered as he stabbed the scalpel into her chest.

"KYA!" Nanao kept her eyes shut. She screamed as she felt him cut her chest open and break through her ribs.

Her voice was hoarse and her tears had gone dry after ten minutes of unimaginable pain. And after another ten, he stepped away from her and held a small purple ball in his bloody hands. "Stupid thing was stuck pretty good." Szayelaporo dropped the ball into a cup of rubbing alcohol. "Now then. Let's stitch you up. Wouldn't want Starrk to go and blow my head off because I tore his girlfriend apart."

Nanao whimpered as she felt Szayelaporo sow her back together. It hurt far less than his earlier actions, but it still hurt.

"WHERE IS SHE!" Nanao heard someone burst through the door to the lab. But couldn't see past the scientist. "OCTAVA!"

Szayelaporo tied off the last knot before he felt himself get flung across the room. "What's got your fur in a knot, Primera?" He wasn't even fazed when Starrk pressed the tip of his sword against his neck. "Look, she's fine. I didn't take out anything important. And I put her back together. And it was under Aizen's orders. So I'm not really the one at fault-"

Starrk ran his sword through the scientist neck and shot a cero at his head. He let the body fall to the ground as he sheathed his zanpakutou. "That is for touching her. Also Aizen's orders."

Starrk walked over to the table that Nanao was on. Lilynette was already removing the bindings on her. "Nanao? Nanao please way something." He began removing the bindings holding her torso down. He tried as hard as he could to take his eyes off of the sown shut lines on her chest.

Nanao gave him a weak smile as she found more tears to cry. "Thank you." Her voice was weak and cracked. She sounded broken.

"Don't thank me." Starrk picked her up gently after she was free of the bindings. He carried her out of the lab and down the halls. He wanted to get her far away from that place.

Nanao tried to focus on anything but the pain in her chest. She quickly caught sight of something shiny having from Starrk's neck. It was her locket.

"It got left behind when you were taken." Starrk felt her hand rest on the piece of metal hanging from his neck. "It woke Lilynette and I with a terrible screeching sound." It had scared them both half to death.

Nanao smirked at the gift Lisa had given her. Lisa had given it to her when she had become a Taichou. It was so that Shunsui would have some peace of kind when she went out on missions.

"What is it suppose to do?" Starrk had asked Nanao about the locket often. But she hadn't told him much about it yet.

Starrk kicked open the door to his room. No one was inside. He closed the door after Lilynette walked in. He laid Nanao on the bad before gathering the first aid kit. He had asked the healers for one so he didn't have to continually call for one when Nanao needed to be healed. He laid the locket down beside her before he bagen to clean the blood off of her. The wound looked worse as he cleaned it.

Nanao bit back a hiss as Starrk cleaned her wounds. "Aizen wanted the Hogyoku."

Starrk frowned. "Why didn't he do this earlier? Why did he decide to do this now?" He certainly wouldn't feel such hatred for the man as he did now.

"I don't know. Maybe he wanted me to get hopeful that I could be rescued. And then take it all away." Nanao felt powerless. And she hated it. "A battle is going to take place. I need to be there."

"Not with a wound like this. This would kill someone." He began applying healing salves.

"I have to. I need to protect someone." Nanao tried to move. But the only thing she could move were her finger and toes.

"Then let me protect them." Starrk tucked Nanao's hair out of her eyes as he applied a salve to the irritated skin on her face. She had a look of surprise.

"Really? But that would mean going against Aizen." Nanao didn't believe Starrk would do that. But his face told her otherwise. She gave him a smile. "Thank you."

Starrk returned her smile. "What does he look like?"

Nanao laughed a bit. "It's hard to miss him. He wears a pink kimono over his white Taichou haori and a bamboo hat on his head. And he will probably try to talk you out of fighting. Or he will agree with you if you offer not to fight." Nanao wanted to see how the two would react to each other. "Take the locket with you. It will let him know you are trying to help me."

Starrk picked up and examined the locket. He tucked it into a pocket in his jacket. "I will make sure he gets it. And that he is not killed."

"Thank you." Nanao smiled as he pulled the blankets up around her.

"Sleep, Nanao." He kissed her forehead before heading for the door. He motioned for Lilynette to follow. He wasn't surprised to find Ulquiorra standing outside his door. "What do you want, Cuatro?" He crossed his arms and glared at the Espada.

"Aizen-sama is gathering all of the Espadas. We are leaving." Ulquiorra turned and began walking away. "Aizen-sama also wanted to thank you for following your orders. Szayelaporo was becoming too free spirited."

Starrk frowned as he followed the Espada. Aizen had used him. 'He won't use me again.'

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Review please. I love hearing from you guys.


	49. War

I do not own Bleach.

* * *

Shunsui walked down the dark corridor of the Dangai. He had a frown on his face and was looking at the ground in front of him.

"Please stop." Jushiro sighed at his friend's behaviour. "Throwing a tantrum won't help. And the tapping is starting to give me a headache."

Shunsui crossed his arms after he stopped taping his sword. "But I'm worried about Nanao-chan." He whined turning his frown into a pout.

Jushiro ran his hand through his hair. "I know. And 1st squad knows as well. How far ahead did you get?" Jushiro had tried to distract his friend as often as he could. That way he would get some sleep other than driving himself to exhaustion.

"The whole squad could probably take a month off." Shunsui had actually gotten paperwork banned from his squad until the schedule caught up with them. "But that should mean that I can go rescue Nanao-chan." Shunsui had hoped that would be the case. But Yamamoto had flat out refused him. "You would think Yamaji would have allowed it since I had all of the paperwork done."

"You know why. He couldn't risk it. We don't know how strong they are. Or if Aizen knew you would go after her. Which quite frankly doesn't even need to be asked." Jushiro hated siding against his friend. But he didn't want to see him get killed either. "The faster we end this war, the sooner you can go and rescue Nanao-san."

Shunsui sighed as they exited the Dangai and walked into the world of the living. He caught sight of a Garganta opening a ways away from them. "I know. But it doesn't mean I will enjoy it."

Both friends stood beside each other as they watched Aizen walk out of the Garganta. Then several others opened up. There had to be almost 30 people standing behind Aizen.

"This is going to be a tough fight." Shunsui didn't like the odds that were against them. They hardly knew any of their powers or strengths. They didn't know if they could trust the information Aizen had given Gin. But they probably knew all of their strengths. "Sort of makes me wish that Retsu-chan and Byakuya-kun had come with us."

"They wanted to go after Kuchiki-san and Abarai-san. Plus they would be needed if Kurosaki ran into any trouble." Jushiro didn't like the numbers he was counting. They were out numbered. And even counting Kenpachi as ten people, they were still outnumbered.

"By the looks of it. All of the trouble is standing in front of us." Shunsui scanned through the crowed. He didn't think Aizen would bring Nanao, but he hoped he had.

"You all know the plan. Stick to it." Yamamoto eyed their opponent and his forces. He didn't know what Aizen was expecting. "Seal the Dangai!"

"Already done." Mayuri smiled as a beep came from the remote in his hand. "Now he can't travel using a Senkaimon."

"You think you have trapped me? Think again. Now you all are trapped here. And you are greatly outmatched." Aizen smiled at the pathetic forces that opposed him. "Being down those towers. And kill them all."

"Yes, Aizen-sama!" All of the Hollows shot off to their designated target.

Except for one. A small one that held the figure of a girl. She stayed beside Aizen. "What are your orders Aizen-sama?" She had not been told about the plan.

Aizen smiled down at the girl. "Just stay with me. Your time will come." Aizen saw the wall of flames approach, but did nothing. He was soon trapped inside a cage of fire. "For now, we wait and relax."

"That should hold him." Yamamoto nodded at the cage he had put around Aizen. "Go!"

The shinigami split off to take care of Hollows that were massing in places. Only a few had a single opponent.

"Found him!" Shunsui and Jushiro looked at the small girl standing beside a bored looking man. "Wow. Nanao's description of him was spot on. I could pick him out the moment we got out of the Garganta."

Shunsui's face was a mix between anger and surprise. "What have you done with my Nanao-chan?" He had a hand on his sword.

Starrk raised an eyebrow. "Nothing. Just keeping her safe." He sighed remembering the condition he left her in. "At least, as best I could."

Shunsui noticed the disappointment on the man's voice. He raised an eyebrow as he relaxed his grip. "How is she?"

"If she was in any condition to be here, she would be. She would refuse to get left behind." Starrk saw a smile cover the man's lips. He knew how stubborn Nanao could be. "Aizen hurt her, and I was powerless to help her."

"How can we trust your words?" Jushiro knew that his description of Nanao was spot on, but it could be a trick.

"That why she told us to give the pink man this." Lilynette held out the locket Nanao had given them. She had asked Starrk for it so she could keep an eye on how Nanao was doing. So far it still played perfectly fine. Just softer than usual. Lilynette tossed the locket at the two men.

Shunsui caught sight of the shining object. He caught it and looked down to make sure it really was what it looked like. A silver heart laid in his hand. He opened it and smiled as it's familiar melody began to play. It was softer than he remembered it. Than when Nanao first showed it to him.

~flashback~

Shunsui walked around the sakura tree garden. He had a tune in his head, but he didn't know where it had come from. He walked around till he came upon his favourite tree. He heard a melody playing in the breeze.

"Nanao-chan?" The music stopped suddenly. "Is Nanao-chan playing music?" He pulled himself up so his head was at the same height that Nanao's was.

Nanao was sitting in her favourite spot. She had her hands clasped together and held under her chin. "Please don't scare me like that."

"Sorry Nanao-chan. Lisa was just looking for you. What are you hiding?" Shunsui didn't want to hand the little girl over to his Fukutaichou yet. He liked spending time with her. Recently he hadn't been able to though.

Nanao looked down at her hands then back at him. "Promise not to tell anyone?"

Shunsui have her a smile. "I promise."

Nanao held out her hands and showed him what she had. The heart was fairly large in her hands. It looked like it had been constantly polished. "It's very special to me."

"Who gave it to you?" Shunsui though the locket was beautiful. Maybe her parents gave it to her.

Nanao looked down at the locket before opening it. It's sweet melody began to play again. "Someone that loves me. And it was so that someone very special to me wouldn't worry."

"Why wouldn't they worry?" Shunsui was surprised by the melody. It was the same he had been humming all morning. How had he heard it?

"Because this locket is very special." Nanao put the locket around her neck as she explained. "If the melody skips a note, it means I was surprised. If it hits a sour note, it means I was hurt. Depending on how strong I am, determines how softly it plays. The weaker I am, the softer it plays. And if it stops playing, it means I am dead."

Shunsui hoped it never stopped playing. "I don't know if that would stop someone from worrying. I think that would just make them more nervous."

"Yes, but at least they know how I am." Nanao leaned her cheek against her knee. "And then if would also know that help would be coming."

"Your special person sounds very protective." Shunsui hoped it wasn't any boy. No boy was good enough for his sweet little Nanao-chan.

Nanao giggled at his comment. "Yes. He is very protective. A little bit too much at times, but I still love him for it."

~flashback end~

Shunsui closed the locket before putting it around his neck. "Thank you, Espada-san."

"Starrk is the name. And this is Lilynette. Sorry we couldn't protect her." Starrk put a hand on Lilynette's head.

"What are you doing?" All four of them looked behind Starrk and Lilynette. Ulquiorra glared at the Espada. "Our orders are to terminate the shinigami, not chat with them or exchange pleasantries."

"Mind your own business." Starrk growled at the Espada. "Shouldn't you be back in Los Noches looking after that woman?"

"She is not my concern. The same as how the other woman is not your concern either." Ulquiorra drew his blade and pointed it at Starrk. "What is your decision, Primera?"

"You're being mean, Ulquiorra." Starrk didn't even bother to look behind him. Shunsui and Jushiro looked behind them to see another Hollow approach them. "Giving Starrk such a hard choice. Keep his promise to the stupid woman he loves, or follow Aizen-sama's orders. Such a hard choice." A Hollow with a long mask and frilly neck approached the group.

The sky darkened and the temperature dropped a bit. "Looks like Hitsugaya-kun has already had to use his Bankai." Shunsui tipped his hat down as he glanced between the two Espada flanking them. "And what would your name be, Espada-san?"

"Aaroniero Arrururerie." Aaroniero pulled off his mask. The sun was blocked, so he could have some fun.

Jushiro tensed as he saw the Espada's face. "Shiba-san? How?"

"Hey there, Ukitake-Taichou. How have you been?" Aaroniero smiled as the man began to shake.

"Jushiro?" Shunsui was worried for his friend. He seemed torn between being relieved, horrified, and angry.

Starrk put a hand on both Shunsui and Jushiro's shoulder. "I will take care of Aaroniero. You two can take care of Ulquiorra." Starrk could see how much Aaroniero's ability was effecting the white haired man. "Be careful. He is very powerful."

Shunsui and Jushiro nod. They both took one more look at Aaroniero before walking past Starrk towards the green eyed Espada.

"So that is your choice, Starrk? Siding with the shinigami? With your-" Aaroniero stopped when he found the Primera Espada no longer in front of him.

"You should have stayed in the shadows, filth." Starrk flicked the blood off of his blade as the Noveno Espada fell from the sky in pieces.

Shunsui and Jushiro were already breathing heavily. And the Espada in front of them didn't even seem to be taking them seriously.

Ulquiorra held up his hand. He fired a cero off in their direction. He was surprised when it got shot back at him. Then a blue one followed it. Trapping him for a green one to shoot at him. He backhanded the green one. It dissolved instantly.

"Darn it!" Lilynette stomped her feet. She was sure she had gotten stronger.

"Do you honestly believe you stand a chance against me, Starrk?" Ulquiorra didn't see the Espada as an ally anymore. So he did not deserve to be called Primera anymore.

"Not alone, Cuatro." Starrk glared at the man before turning his eyes to the two shinigami beside him. "You should release if you are having trouble. Holding back will only get you killed against him."

Shunsui sighed as he drew his wakizashi and released his zanpakutou without a word. "How powerful is he compared to you?"

"He holds the rank of number 4. I hold the rank of number 1." Starrk removed his glove and showed Shunsui the number on his hand. "But if he were to fight seriously, he could probably beat me."

"That powerful huh?" Shunsui tensed as he saw Ulquiorra hold his blade out in front of him.

"If you are fighting with them, then I have to stop you." Ulquiorra had hoped not to have to use this yet. But he didn't want to give Starrk a chance to retaliate. "Enclose, Murcielago."

Starrk ground his teeth. "Lilynette!" The small girl was by his side immediately. Ulquiorra's reiatsu settled and revealed his Ressureccion. "That is what our power is. Our zanpakutou is our full power. When we became an Espada, our powers were sealed into swords. And releasing our power...is our Resureccion." Starrk and Lilynette tuned their reiatsus together. Lilynette vanished as Starrk took his hand off of her head. "And this is mine. Kick About, Los Lobos!"

Shunsui stayed put and kept an eye on the bat like Espada's reiatsu. He glanced sideways as the smoke around Starrk cleared. "What happened to the little girl?"

"Right here!" Shunsui and Jushiro peered at the guns Starrk held in his hands. "What? You got something to say Pinky?"

"Shut it Lilynette. We have work to do." Starrk kept his eyes on Ulquiorra. "You'll die before you get a chance to use your Sugunda Etapa."

"How do you know of that?" Ulquiorra gave the Espada a glare.

Starrk smirked at the man's reaction. "We all know about it. We've just never seen it. And hope to never see it." He pointed his guns at the Espada. "No chance of talking you out of this fight?"

Ulquiorra pointed his hand at Starrk and began. Charging a cero. "No."

~back with Nanao~

Nanao tried using kido to heal herself. But the ribbon around her neck didn't even let her touch her reiryoku without hurting her. 'It's no use. Guys...I need help.'

Nanao ran a hand along the ribbon. It's surface was silky and flawless.

She felt a tug at her neck. Not like before, but like someone was pulling on the ribbon. She saw the world around her begin to crack. "What?" The world around her shattered. And so did the ribbon. 'I'm-'

She stopped when she felt a hand squeeze her neck. She opened her eyes to see Nnoitra holding her. "So you're still alive, woman?" Nnoitra laughed as the woman began to struggle. "Shall I take you to your man? It's far too boring here. Everyone is taken."

Nanao looked around her. She was in Karakura town. She could see many people fighting. The shinigami were outnumbered, but the Hollows seemed to be the only side loosing numbers.

Nnoitra let go of her neck and grabbed her hair. "Let's go have some fun."

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Thank you for reading this far. Please let me know what you think of my story.


	50. The Fight Continues

I do not own Bleach.

* * *

Nnoitra dropped Nanao onto the roof he had landed on. "What a nice view. Those stupid shinigami don't stand a chance. But I wonder if Starrk is really fighting against Ulquiorra?"

Nanao looked up. Her eyes widened as she saw Shunsui and Jushiro standing beside Starrk. Shunsui was missing his kimono and hat. Starrk was in his Ressureccion. "Be safe." She whispered silently as she saw them attack.

Nanao felt something catch in her throat and her chest hurt terribly. She began coughing heavily and holding her chest. Each cough hurt terribly. She spit the liquid in her mouth out. She covered her mouth when she saw that it was blood.

"So you're dying? Fine by me. I'm going to go find some fun. Feel free to die while i'm gone." Nnoitra left the dying woman on the roof. She wasn't his concern anymore. He was told to kill her, but what fun was killing a dying person?

Nanao looked away from her own blood when she saw something in the corner of her eye. A prison of fire. 'Is Aizen there?'

'Most likely.' Nanao smiled as she heard Chibara speak. She hadn't heard from them in months.

A tear opened up beside the fire dome. A large purple hollow walked out of it. It blew out the fire surrounding Aizen.

'Damn it. So much for keeping him contained.' Nanao looked back towards the fight happening above her. But her view was blocked by a small blond Espada. She remembered creating it a while ago. "Wonderwiess?"

"Oh! Ah!" Wonderwiess brought his hand back. Then thrust it towards Nanao.

Nanao quickly brought up a kido wall. 'What is happening? Aizen created Wonderwiess to counter Ryujin Jakka.' Nanao saw the kido beginning to crack. She brought both of her hands up in front of her. "Seeping crest of turbidity. Arrogant vessel of lunacy! Boil forth and deny! Grow numb and flicker! Disrupt sleep! Crawling queen of iron! Eternally self-destructing doll of mud! Unite! Repulse! Fill with soil and know your own powerlessness! Hado 90: Kurohitsugi!"

Nanao caught herself on her hands after the kido left her hands. She watched as it closed over the small Espada. When the kido faded, Wonderwiess moved back towards the large Hollow by Aizen. Nanao stared at him in horror. How was he mostly unharmed?

Nanao's breath caught in her throat again and she began coughing. "You're far to much trouble." Nanao looked over towards the voice as she continued to cough. She could feel her hand becoming slick as she coughed. "Just die already." Nnoitra brought his zanpakutou down on the girl.

*CLANG*

Nanao looked up with surprise at her rescuer. "Lisa-senpai?"

"You okay, Nanao-chan?" Lisa was relieved to see the girl again. When Urahara had told them Aizen had kidnaped her, they had all feared the worst.

Nanao gave her masked mentor a smirk as she tried to stand, but failed. "Do I look okay?"

"No. You look like hell." Lisa turned her masked face to the Espada pressing against her blade. "And are you the one that did that?"

Nnoitra looked at the woman in front of his with a puzzled face. "What are you? And I wish I was the one. Because then I could finally go at it against the Primera."

*BOOM*

The three of them looked over to see a dust cloud form around the fight that was going on above them.

'Shunsui!' Nanao could still feel his reiatsu, but that didn't stop her from worrying.

"Looks like the Cuatro is going to beat me to it though." Nnoitra backed away from the two women. "So let's see what you can do, woman."

Nanao materialized her katana and used it to help her get to her feet. She staggered a bit once she was up. "Nanao!" Lisa caught the girl before she fell again. "Stay down if your hurt."

Nnoitra laughed as he watched the girl struggle. "This is going to be entertaining. A half dead chick is going to try and fight me?! The toughest Espada! Ha!"

"Nanao, rest. I can take care of him." Lisa could tell the Espada was strong. She didn't even know if she could take him on.

"I can't let you take him on alone. I know how strong he is. And it is far above your level." Nanao stood tall and held Gaikotsu in front of her. "Breath The Air Of Life, Gaikotsu." She sighed as her pain left her. "We will face him together."

Lisa smiled and stepped up beside Nanao. "The moment you start turning pale I am tying you up and taking you to Hacchi. No whining about it."

Nanao laughed at lisa's protectiveness. "Alright." Nanao looked towards Nnoitra with a smirk. She held her hand over her face and brought her mask down. "Let's take care of him."

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Please leave a review for me. Chapter 50!


	51. Coming To an End

I do not own Bleach.

* * *

Nnoitra laughed as the two women faced him. "You think either of you are a challenge for me?!" He began laughing at them even more.

"Then what if we join?" Nanao and Lisa looked behind them. Rose and Love were walking up to them. "I'm sure two Taichou level shinigami will be more then enough for you."

"Stay out of this Love. I saw him first." Lisa glared at the two men. "Four on one isn't even going to be fun."

"Then three on one." Nanao looked past Nnoitra to see Shinji standing in front of Aizen. "I'm going to talk to Shinji."

"I'm still going to keep an eye on you." Lisa faced Nanao.

Nanao nodded at Lisa before heading off towards Shinji and Azien. She heard their battle begin shortly after she left. 'Be safe.'

She landed lightly beside Shinji. He frowned at her. "I can handle this myself."

Nanao pulled off her mask. "Bite me." She sent a glare at Aizen. 'Who's the chick beside him?'

"Aizen-sama, shall I take care of them?" The girl placed a hand on her zanpakutou.

Aizen placed a hand over hers. "Not yet." He looked over at Nanao. She seemed to have recovered from the Hogyoku extraction. "I'm surprised you can fight. Or even stand for that matter. How do you do it?"

"None of your business!" Nanao tried to figure out who the girl was, but couldn't.

"So, you've got a plan or something?" Shinji glanced at the girl beside him. He could see a bit of blood at the corner of her mouth. "Should I hold off on releasing my zanpakutou?"

"Doesn't matter. He already knows what it does." Nanao ran through the war report in her mind. There probably wasn't a single zanpakutou that Aizen didn't know the power of.

"Oh? And how would he know?" Shinji eyed the girl curiously. Did she betray them?

"Don't look at me like that. I didn't tell him. He already knew." Nanao frowned as the girl beside Aizen began to fidget. 'Has she never been in a war before?'

Aizen smiled as the two spoke to each other. "Feel free to try what ever you wish. Nothing will work."

*CRACK*

Nanao smirked as Ichigo broke through a crack behind Aizen. She launched at him once his shield activated. She was blocked by the masked girl that was beside Aizen and forced back.

Nanao picked herself up out of the rubble she had landed in. "So your Aizen's little experiment? How does it feel to be more Hollow than whole?" She launched herself at the girl again. The girl was weaker than her, but not by much.

Nanao ducked under an attack and brought her katana up. She managed to snag the end of the girl' small and rip it off. Nanao stared in horror as the girl smiled at her.

"Hi..Hinamori? What are you doing?" Nanao brought her zanpakutou in front of her again. She didn't know the girl had switched sides. She had never seen her in Los Noches.

Momo gave the girl a smile. "I'm doing what any Fukutaichou should do. I'm protecting my Taichou. He told me why he did what he did. The shinigami have become corrupt. And the only way to fix it is to be on top."

"Momo that's crazy! He was going to kill you!" Nanao took a step back as Hinamori attacked her.

"He did it to protect me. Otherwise they might have charged me with being a traitor by affiliation. He has always been protecting me!" Hinamori brought her blade down on Nanao. The woman blocked her. "And now I will protect Aizen." She pulled her mask back on over her face. She steeps bahind Nanao and attacked. She missed, but just barely.

Nanao landed away from the girl. She felt her now chin length hair tickle the back of her neck. 'Too close. Far too close.'

"I'm sorry." Nanao stopped as she felt a blade run though her stomach from her back. "Please die quickly." Momo twisted the blade and cut out of Nanao's body.

Nanao coughed as a burst of pain ran through her body. She feels her knees buckle, but doesn't feel any impact.

"I got you, Nanao-chan." Shunsui shifted Nanao into his arms so he was carrying her. "Hang in there." Shunsui saw a smile on her face as she nodded and rested her head against his chest. "How is the little traitor?"

Starrk threw the unconscious form of Aizen's latest creation over his shoulder. "Out cold."

The two men nodded as they headed towards the makeshift relief station.

Lisa caught sight of the two men as they walked up to the tent. "Where did you two go?" She saw the small girl slung over the Espada's shoulder and Shunsui holding someone. "Nanao?!" Lisa ran over to Shunsui as he set her down on a mat in the tent. "What happened?"

Shunsui said nothing as he sat himself down beside Nanao. He smiled a bit as she placed her hand over his.

"I do believe more self preservation is needed, Ise-san" Unahana sat down beside Lisa and began working on healing Nanao's more serious wounds.

Nanao laughed a bit, but stopped when it began to hurt. "I don't think my zanpakutou is helping with that."

"ATTENTION ALL!" Everyone began listening as they heard the voice of the Soutaichou. "THE TRAITOR AIZEN SOSUKE HAS FLED THE BATTLE FIELD! GIVE CHASE IMMEDIATELY! I REPEAT GIVE CHASE IMMEDIATELY!"

Nanao looked over at Shunsui. He seemed torn between going after Aizen and staying with her. "Go get him. I'm not going anywhere."

Shunsui smiled down at her. "I'll be back shortly." He got up and walked to the entrance of the tent. He stopped when he was beside Starrk. "Look after her."

"I will." Starrk looked back at Nanao once Shunsui walked past him.

Nanao frowned as she wondered what Shunsui had said to the Espada.

"Ise-san? You zoned out again." Unahana noticed the girl' stare linger on her former superior. It was a secret that they both had feelings for each other. "How is it that you can be wounded enough that a anyone would dies from, yet still be able to fight?"

Lisa noticed the girl' seems begin to drop. "She's losing consciousness. Nanao-chan? Nanao-chan you need to stay awake." Lisa moved to the side that Shunsui had bee previously occupying. "And to answer your question, it's an ability of her zanpakutou. But it's effect ends when she loses consciousness. And she can keep going until she is nothing but a pool of blood. As long as she is conscious, she is alive."

Unahana nodded at the explanation. "I can see why self preservation would be a problem to learn then." Unahana found the most severe and life threatening wounds and began healing those first. "I will see what I can do."

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Review please! Tell me what you think of my story.


	52. Rest and Recover

I do not own Bleach.

* * *

Nanao woke to the sound of purring. She opened her eyes and saw a cat under each of her arms and Chishitoge above her head. She smiled at them before looking around the rest of the room.

"She's up! She's up!" Lilynette jumped over to the bed and smiled widely. "You're up!"

Nanao smiled at the girl. "I can tell I'm up. How are you both?" Nanao found no strength in her arms. But thought it was probably best if she taped lying down.

Starrk walked over to Nanao's bedside. "We're good. A few scratches here and there, but nothing like what you had." He placed his hand gently on hers. "Is he the one you've been singing about?"

Nanao blushed as remembering her morning routine. "Yeah."

"Does he love you back?" Starrk tucked a stray hair out of her face. He knew how he saw the woman. She was family.

"Yes. I know he does." Nanao smiled. "You sound like an older brother."

"Do you have one?" Nanao shook her head. Starrk smiled again. "Then I will be your older brother." He kissed her forehead. "Get some sleep. You need it." Starrk led Lilynette out of the room. They had people to talk to.

"That was so cute I think I might die." Chishitoge slid down the side of Nanao's pillow and rubbed against her face. "He is a very good Onii-chan."

"Yes. Yes he is." Nanao snuggled back against her cat.

"Good to see you aren't dead." Nanao looked over to see Lisa leaning on the doorframe. Lisa smiled as she watched all of the cats smile at her. "It's till amazes me how easily you can materialize these guys. And that they like to come out on their own." She scratched the top of Gaikotsu"s head.

"I wasn't going to die. Your just exaggerating." Nanao frowned at her mentor. Even though she knew Nanao was stronger than her, she still babied her a bit.

"If Unahana hadn't had healed you you would have." Lisa took a step back as a blond haired woman ran into the room and towards Nanao.

"Nanao-chan!" Rangiku hugged Nanao tightly. Nanao gave a hiss of pain as Rangiku's breast pressed against her chest. Rangiku moved Nanao away and smiled apologetically. "Sorry sorry. I'm just so glad you're alright. How are you feeling?"

"Like it just got stabbed multiple times and crushed. So pretty normal." Nanao smiled at her friend. "You don't have to worry."

"Don't go exaggerating things. And don't tell me not to worry." Rangiku placed her hands on her hips. "You may have people you are willing to put your life on the line for, but there are also people who will do the same for you. So people are going to worry about you just like how you worry for them."

Nanao sighed at Rangiku's explanation. "What happened to Hinamori?"

Rangiku's large grin turned into a sad smile. "She vanished about a month after you did. Right now she is locked up in first. But they are probably going to move her elsewhere. They have declared her mentally unstable."

"What was her Hollowfication like?" She directed the question to Lisa.

Los stepped forward and sat on the edge of Nanao's bed. "It's different from ours. Ours is only breaking the barrier between us and our inner Hollows. Hers fused her together with her Hollow."

"Sounds rough." Chishitoge climbed back up onto the top of Nanao's pillow.

"Who's the cat? Where did all of the cats come from? Is Unahana okay with them being here?" Rangiku looked at all of the cats. The purple one gave her the creeps.

"They are my zanpakutou. Chishitoge..." Nanao pointed to the purple cat. "Chibara..." She pointed to the black cat. "And Gaikotsu."

"Wait. So do they show up as three separate weapons?" Rangikus eyes widened as her friend nodded at her. "Wow. I've never heard of that. I mean, sure Kyoraku-kun and Ukitake-san have two. But three? No wonder Central 46 didn't take a liking to you."

"Well I can see why men like you." Everyone looked towards the purple cat. "What is your breast size?"

"CHISHITOGE!" Nanao stared at her zanpakutou with a horrified look. The cat looked at her quizzically. "What am I going to do with you?"

Rangiku and Lisa had started laughing when Nanao had started yelling. Her face had gone bright red with embarrassment.

"Please be quiet. This is a hospital." Unahana smiled at the three girls in the room. The room had gone deathly silent.

"Sorry, Unahana-Taichou." All three girls spoke and bowed their heads in apology.

"How are you feeling, Ise-san?" Unahana made her way into the room. She shoed the cats off of the bed and began running a diagnostic kido over the woman.

"Sore mostly. But I think I'm starting to get a headache." Nanao glanced sideways at the two other people in the room. Rangiku just gave her a smile. Lisa waved to her with a smile.

"I see." Unahana saw where Nanao's gaze led. "Matsumoto-san, Ichimaru-Taichou can have visitors now. He just woke up a few minutes ago."

Rangiku quickly ran out of the room. She had been waiting for Gin to wake up.

"Thank you, Unahana-Taichou." Nanao sighed as she felt the numbing kido take away the ache that was starting to building in her chest.

"Rest. It will help." Unahana patted the woman's arm before leaving the room to check on the rest of her patients.

"Lisa-senpai? Can you make sure Shunsui doesn't do anything rash?" Nanao could feel sleep starting to creep on her consciousness.

"First name basis? Did you two go farther than I thought while I was gone?" Lisa smiled as Nanao began blushing and stuttering. "Don't worry about it. I'll make sure he doesn't kill himself." Lisa pulled the blankets up to Nanao's chin.

"You don't have to tuck me in. I'm not a child." Nanao hid half of her face under the top of the blanket.

Lisa tucked the blanket under Nanao's chin. "You'll always be my little Nanao-chan." She tapped the end of her nose before making her way out of the small room. She turned the light out as she left.

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Please leave a comment.


	53. Back to 8th

I do not own Bleach.

* * *

Nanao woke again to sunlight filtering into the window. She sat up and found herself in an empty bed. She stretched all of her sore muscles, that only protested a bit.

"Good morning Ise-san." Unahana smiled at the girl from the doorway. "I have cleared you to go home. Please take your time." She left the girl and headed off to other patients.

Nanao got out of bed only to realize how cold the floor was. She looked around the room and found a uniform on the chair in the room. She quickly jumped across the cold floor and sat on the chair. Then pulled the socks off the top of the pile and slipped then on her feet.

It didn't take her long to put on the rest of he uniform she was happy to see it was an unaltered uniform. She frowned trying to think of who had given her the uniform. Most of the girls she knew would have given her an altered uniform. 'Doesn't matter. At least it's unaltered.'

Nanao took a deep breath when she got outside of the hospital. Fresh air smelled nice.

"Ise-san." Nanao looked beside her. The Fukutaichou of 1st squad was standing beside her. "Please follow me." Sasakibe turned and began heading to 1st squad.

Nanao followed the man to 1st squad. Then into the Soutaichou's office. She stood quietly as he continued to fill out paperwork.

It was about ten minutes till he put down his pen and looked towards the woman standing in the room. "I'm surprised you haven't spoken yet."

"You haven't addressed me yet, sir." Nanao held her hands behind her back.

"So formal now. After such blatant disrespect the last time I spoke to you." Yamamoto looked at the girl as she fidgeted in his presence. "How powerful are you?"

Nanao met his eyes. "As powerful as I was before. Maybe a bit stronger."

Yamamoto raised an eyebrow at her. "Are you saying you were as powerful as you are now back then? And you restrained yourself to be named as the weakest Fukutaichou?" Yamamoto laughed. "Central 46 certainly didn't need to restrict your power. You do that on your own."

"Sir? I don't believe you wanted to see me just to discuss my power?" Nanao didn't believe for a minute he didn't have an underlying reason for getting her to his office before Shunsui found out she was released from the hospital.

Yamamoto stopped laughing abruptly. "You are right." He placed his only hand down on his desk. "Aizen got away."

"Not surprised. With the Hogyoku imbedded in his body, he would be near impossible." Nanao crossed her arms as she spoke.

"According to Urahara, he wasn't in control of the Hogyoku." Nanao frowned at the Soutaichou's words. "He did become exceedingly powerful, but Kurosaki Ichigo was able to match his power. And it looked like Kurosaki would win. The Hogyoku split from Aizen. Reducing him back to a regular shinigami. That was when he disappeared."

"What has become of Kurosaki Ichigo?" Nanao was worried Aizen would try again if Ichigo had lost his shinigami powers.

"He is resting at the Kuchiki manor. According to Urahara, he is losing his shinigami powers." Yamamoto saw the worry double in Nanao's eyes. He knew what she was worrying about. "Urahara has also said that Aizen will be unable to use the Hogyoku. Because it does not acknowledge him as it's master."

"That's a relief." Nanao ran her hand through her hair. Careful not to mess up her hair clips. "Anything else you need?"

"I do not need anything. But 8th squad seems to be in need of a Fukutaichou." Yamamoto placed the Fukutaichou badge on the edge of his desk. "If you're interested in it."

Nanao smiled as she made her way to his desk and picked up the badge. "I heard you banned paperwork from going to 8th squad."

"Please don't leave without an explanation again." Yamamoto gave her a serious look. Shunsui not doing paperwork, he didn't mind. Shunsui doing nonstop paper work and begging him for things, he loathed.

Nanao gave him a smile as she tied the badge to her arm. "I'll make sure to submit a formal report when I wish to disappear." Nanao bowed before she walked out of the office. She found herself having trouble not running back to 8th squad. So she settled on using her highest level of shunpo.

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	54. Reconnecting

I do not own Bleach.

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Nanao stood outside the office doors. She contemplated whether she should knock or not. She finally settled on just walking in. She opened the door to find the office in order and being bathed in morning light.

She smirked as she saw Shunsui laying on the couch with several bottles scattered around him. "Now what are you moping about this time, Taichou?"

Shunsui peaked out of one eye. He smiled sadly as he saw Nanao standing in the doorway. "Why are you with Coyote-san?"

Nanao frowned at his question. She walked into the office and shut the door behind her. "He left. He has to reorganize the Espada. Why did you think I would be with him?"

"Do you love him?" Shunsui covered his eyes with his arm. He didn't want to see Nanao's face when she responded.

Nanao laughed as she walked towards him. She sat down in front of the couch and easily found one of Shunsui's half full bottles. She took a drink and cringed as the liquid filled her mouth. She swallowed and giggled. "You grabbed from the watered down stash."

Shunsui smiled at her statement. "Someone locked all of my other stashes with a nasty little kido spell."

"I did leave your desk stash alone." Nanao took another drink from the weak sake.

"I forgot about that one." Shunsui frowned. He sighed heavily thinking of how easily they had started a conversation. "Why are you here?"

"Well I am your Fukutaichou. So I can't let my Taichou drink himself to death." Nanao took another drink to try and find a bit of courage. "And I love you too much to leave you."

Shunsui sat up quickly after she spoke. "What did my lovely Nanao-chan say?"

Nanao took another drink before she turned and looked at him. She had to look up to look into his eyes. She found herself almost unable to say a word. But she managed a whisper. "I love you."

Shunsui brought his hand up to her cheek and leaned into her face, pressing his lips against hers. He felt her hands come up and lay against his chest. He nipped at her bottom lip gently. Nanao opened her mouth and let his tongue explore and dance with hers.

They broke apart gasping for air several minutes later.

"We shouldn't be doing this while your drunk." Nanao was trying to get air back into her lungs.

Shunsui pouted. "I'm not that drunk."

"Well you certainly aren't sober." Nanao stood up and began collecting the bottles and placing them on her desk.

Shunsui stood behind her and wrapped his arms around her. "How do you know. The sake was watered down." He began kissing her neck and shoulder.

Nanao shivered gently. "Because if you were even remotely close to being sober, we wouldn't still be in the office."

Shunsui smiled at her statement. "But Nanao-chan is doing out of uniform stuff while in uniform. That isn't very Nanao-like either." He nipped at her pulse and smiled as it quickened.

"Firstly, this isn't my uniform. Secondly, it's not a work day. I don't start till Monday. And you were the one that started the kiss." Nanao stepped away from him and towards the door. "Let's get you home so you can sleep off the sake. It's before noon so you aren't even suppose to be up yet."

Shunsui followed behind Nanao with a grin on his face. "Coming my sweet beautiful Nanao-chan." He wrapped an arm around her shoulder.

Nanao rolled her eyes at him, but let his arm stay there. "I'm going to have to find you another sakkat. You don't look like yourself without it."

"What about a pink kimono?" Shunsui smiled as he tucked Nanao's short hair behind her ear. Short hair looked nice on her.

"I already know you have a collection of at least a hundred of them." She caught sight of the look of surprise on his face. Nanao snorted and quickly covered her mouth before laughing even more. Shunsui joined in her laughing.

They laughed until they got to Shunsui's house. Nanao followed him in when he nearly walked into a wall. She had to make sure he didn't hurt himself. She got him to his bedroom and let him fall onto his futon.

She didn't expect him to drag her down with him. "Shunsui! Not while your drunk." She struggled to get out of his grip.

"Stay with me." He whispered softly into her neck. He didn't want to let her go. Not now, and not ever.

Nanao stopped struggling and turned to face him. She placed a hand on his cheek and smiled at him. "Always." She kissed him gently before laying her head down on a pillow.

Shunsui reached behind his head and uncalled the chain around his neck. He pulled Nanao's locket out of his uniform. "This is yours." He kissed her forehead as he placed the locket in her hand. "Thank you."

Nanao smiled as she listen to him fall asleep. She giggled silently as he began to snore softly. He snored softly when he was asleep and loudly when he was pretending to sleep.

She took the locket in her hand and smiled at her thought. She gently reached around his neck and secured the chain around his neck. She kissed his cheek and tried to sneak off of the bed. But an arm had snaked around and was holding her tightly against him.

'Fine.' Nanao eased his shoulder back till he was on his back. She then laid her head on his chest and placed a hand over his heart. 'Perfect.' Nanao closed her eyes and relaxed. She wasn't going anywhere.

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So...who thinks I should continue the story?


	55. Author Notes

Hello there,

So this isn't a new chapter, but I do have news pertaining to this story. If you haven't realized it already, I have redone Chapter 1. I added more to it so that y'all know what happened to Seto after Nanao vanished.

Also, i do have a third instalment of this story. Sadly it is going to have to wait. Because I am taking a bit of a break. About a two year break to try and refocus my life. I will come back and finish this story. I'm a bit OCD that way.

I may put up other things, but as of August 27th, 2014...I will be taking a break for about two years. I may come back earlier, but I guess only time will tell.

Thank you for reading my story and giving me feedback on it. I really appreciate it.

Kairi


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